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A UTHOR: 
 
 ORRIS, EDMUND ELLIS 
 
 TITLE: 
 
 THE AGE OF ANNE 
 
 PLACE: 
 
 DATE: 
 
 1877 
 
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 Morris, Edward Ellis, 1843-1901. 
 
 ... The age of Anne; by Edward E. Morris ... With maps 
 and plans. London, Longmans, Green, and co., 1877. 
 
 xxiil, ill, 242 p. Incl. lllua., 2 geneal. tab. fold, front, maps (part 
 fold.) 16«. {Half-title: Epochs of modern history, ed. by B. B. Mor- 
 ris, J. S. Phlllpotts, and C. Colbeck) 
 
 Series title also at head of t.-p. 
 Copy 2. 1898. 
 
 
 D942.069 Copy in Collece Library. 1898. 
 
 i M83 1. Gt. Brit.— Ulst.— Anne, 1702-iri4. i. Title. 
 
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 Mi ig "I'l 
 
Epochs of Modern History 
 
 EDITED BY 
 )WARD E. MORRIS, M.A., J. SURTEES PHILLPOTTS. B.C.L. 
 
 AND 
 
 C. COLBECK, M.A. 
 
 THE AGE OF ANNE 
 
 EDWARD E. MORRIS, M.A. 
 
I 
 
 LONDON : PRINTED BY 
 
 SPOTTISWOODE AND CO'. , NEW-STREET SQUARS 
 
 AND PARLIAMENT STREET 
 
 ill 
 
 |Jtl 
 
Epochs of Modern History 
 
 HE AGE OF ANNE 
 
 BY 
 
 EDWARD E. MORRIS, M.A. 
 
 
 OF LINCOLN COLLEGE, OXFORD 
 HEAD MASTER OF THE niELBOURNE GRAMMAR SCHOOL, AUSTRALIA 
 
 1 • 
 
 \ * T \ 
 
 "111* -% ««■: 
 
 WITH MAPS AND PLANS 
 
 LONDON 
 LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 
 
 1877 
 
 LanAon.: L angmtuns 4- Co. 
 
 "EdW'?Wenc 
 
 Ail rt^kis reserved 
 
Jr Ja. X-rf A .iV- V— ' j-rf» 
 
 It would not be fair to this little book to send it 
 forth to take its chance in the world without a preface, 
 however much I should prefer that course. My aim in 
 writing the book has been so definite, my object so dis- 
 tinct, that I particularly wish it not to be tried by an un- 
 suitable standard, nor condemned upon wrong grounds. 
 
 In the field of history, as with other kinds of 
 knowledge, there are two orders of workers. On the 
 one side are original writers, who make researches, 
 and delve for new ore ; on the other, those who 
 perform the humbler but equally needful office of 
 teaching, of spreading knowledge, and working into 
 shape the material which the former produce. This 
 book is not a contribution to the general fund of his- 
 torical knowledge. Those who before knew the history 
 ^" of its period will find here no new light. It is offered 
 as an effort to assist in the teaching of history in 
 schools. It is written in the light of a theory, accord- 
 ing to the soundness of which and the measure with 
 which it has been followed my book must stand or fall. 
 
 Much as I should like to study history as it ought 
 to be studied, to ransack Record offices and public 
 libraries for new information, and with its help to 
 
 /a 
 
 1L, J •' ^ 
 
VI 
 
 Preface, 
 
 place in new aspect facts known before, I can claim 
 no credit for such work. I have had neither the time 
 nor the opportunity. The demands upon a school- 
 master's hours leave him little leisure, and the undue 
 pressure of examination, with which nowadays each 
 school-time closes, destroys the working power of at 
 least a portion of his holidays. But a schoolmaster 
 may fairly be expected to know the kind of book that 
 will be good for the purpose of teaching. This is the 
 reason for my venture ; but I clearly recognise its limits. 
 
 The theory on which the book is based is the 
 cardinal theory of the whole series called Epochs of 
 History. I was led some years ago to believe that, 
 in spite of the flood of school histories pouring from 
 the press, there was room for a series, in which short 
 periods could be studied with that fulness without 
 which history is comparatively unprofitable. I had 
 the good fortime to find publishers in the first to 
 whom I applied, and to secure the cordial co-opera- 
 tion of several distinguished writers. As long as I 
 remained in England I edited the series. 
 
 It would be ludicrous to claim originality for this 
 method. I have always found that schoolmasters 
 who are really educators accept the doctrine. But 
 I am very anxious to state it clearly, for history 
 lessons have been and are continually ruined by the 
 intrusion of cram — names that are mere shadows, and 
 a profusion of dates. 
 
 History is not taught in schools that the excellent 
 virtue of accuracy may be learnt. To teach this is 
 the function of other lessons that occupy a much 
 larger portion of the pupil's time. History should 
 
 Preface. 
 
 VII 
 
 be taught for the sake of its human interest. For 
 this reason I have made it my first object to avoid 
 being dull. I have been very biographical, taking 
 care to introduce formally all new characters of im- 
 portance as they come upon the stage. Again, I 
 have not feared the accusation of being a * drum and 
 trumpet historian,' for war, unfortunately, is an in- 
 trinsic part of history, and always stirs the interest of 
 the young, acting as the bait which may draw them 
 on to the study of other matters. 
 
 Disclaiming originality, I wish to indicate the 
 sources from which I have drawn. The end of Lord 
 Macaulay's history overlaps the period, but, unfor- 
 tunately, only the end : all must lament that he was 
 not spared to write the history of a time with which 
 his acquaintance was so intimate. His essay on Lord 
 Mahon's early book is almost as valuable as that book 
 itself for the war in Spain. In the same way Lord 
 Mahon's History of England from the Peace of 
 Utrecht is helpful for the couple of years at the end 
 of my period. The volume which the same historian 
 wrote as Earl Stanhope, to cover the ground between 
 the close of Macaulay's history and the opening of 
 his own, I am inclined not to value so highly as 
 his larger work ; but I have no wish to depreciate a 
 book that has been one of my chief authorities. * A 
 History of Great Britain during the Reign of Queen 
 Anne,' lately published by Mr. F. W. Wyon, is more 
 thorough in its research and more interesting. His 
 judgment is independent, and his knowledge of French 
 memoirs very complete. It is a matter for regret that 
 he seems to ignore or to despise the work of German 
 
 I. ii 
 i 
 
 r I 
 
VIU 
 
 Preface, 
 
 *J I; 
 
 historians. I have found Noorden's *Spanische 
 Erbfolgekrieg ' a very mine in which to dig, though 
 I fancy no man could read the book through. The 
 period is unfortunately beyond the point wliere the 
 great Ranke writes with fulness, but his sketches are 
 of more value than the details of others. Gfrorer's 
 
 * History of the Eighteenth Century ' is suggestive. 
 
 I have used Burnet's * History of His Own Time ' 
 with necessary caution, and the Lives of Marlborough 
 by Coxe and Alison. Considering the purpose for 
 which the book is intended, I have not hesitated to 
 use my authorities freely, nor cared to avoid their 
 language. I confess indeed that I have been amused 
 to trace thoughts and expressions from authority to 
 autliority, and doubt not that I also have borrowed, 
 perhaps too easily, even the words of others. 
 
 To the list which I have given, and which is by 
 no means exhaustive, I must add the following as of 
 use in special portions. M. Duruy's 'Histoire de 
 France ' (* Rhe'torique '), Mrs. Bray's * Revolt of the 
 Cevennes,' Dr. Bridges' ^ France under Richelieu and 
 Colbert,' the introduction to Carlyle's * Frederick the 
 Great,' and Thackeray's * Esmond' and the 'Four 
 Georges.' It is a matter of regret that in a novel like 
 
 * Esmond,' which gives so excellent a picture of Queen 
 Anne's reign, Thackeray should have placed the Old 
 Pretender in London at the time of his sister's death 
 — a deviation from history not necessary to the de- 
 velopment of his plot. 
 
 Edward E. Morris. 
 
 The Grammar School, Melbourne : 
 
 ' September ^, 1876. 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents. 
 
 -•e*- 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE SPANISH SUCCESSION. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Spain still territorially the most powerful kingdom in 
 
 Europe, though she had outgrown her strength . i 
 
 Her want of vitality shown under the feeble rule of 
 
 the childless Charles II. 2 
 
 Importance of the question as to his successor . 4 
 
 Three claimants : 
 
 (i) Philip, Duke of Anjou 4 
 
 (2) Joseph, the Electoral Prince .... 4 
 
 (3) The Archduke Charles 4 
 
 Aggressive policy of France under Lewis XIV. dan- 
 gerous to Europe 4 
 
 The one great opponent of Lewis — William of 
 
 Orange 5 
 
 1697 The contest stayed by Peace of Ryswick ... 5 
 
 1698 First Partition Treaty 6 
 
 1700 Death of Joseph, and second Partition Treaty . 6 
 
 Irritation of Spain 7 
 
 The Darien Scheme 7 
 
 Unpopularity of William in England ... 8 
 
 The Kingdom of Spain willed to Phili[) of Anjou . 9 
 
 ' II n'y a plus de Pyrenees ' 9 
 
 Lewis's three mistakes : 
 (i) Reservation of Philip's right of succession to 
 
 the French throne .10 
 
 {2) Occupation of Spanish Netherlands . . 10 
 (3) Recognition of the Old Pretender . . .10 
 
Chronological Table of Contents, 
 
 PAGE 
 
 1701 The Grand Alliance of the Hague, result of these 
 
 mistakes ^^ 
 
 1702 Death of William ^^ 
 
 His character 
 
 12 
 
 CHAPTER H. 
 
 LEWIS XIV. 17 14. 
 
 1648 
 1668 
 
 1678 
 1697 
 
 1713 
 
 i68i 
 1685 
 1688 
 
 (Contemporary with Charles I.. Cromwell. Charles 
 n., James 11. , William and Mary, Anne. George I.) 
 Five stages in his reign marked by— 
 
 (i) Treaty of Westphalia, which ended the Thirty 
 
 Years' War 
 
 (2) Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. which, forced on 
 Lewis by the Triple Alliance, ended the War of 
 Succession in Brabant . • • * . ' 
 
 (3) Treaty of Nymwegen. which ended the in- 
 vasion of Holland 
 
 (4) Treaty of Ryswick, which ended the war against 
 the Grand Alliance 
 
 (5) Treaty of Utrecht 
 
 Three impolitic acts of Lewis : 
 
 (i) Seizure of Strassburg 
 
 (2) Revocation of Edict of Nantes 
 
 (3) Ravaging of the Palatinate .... 
 
 13 
 
 17 
 19 
 
 23 
 
 133 
 
 20 
 
 20 
 22 
 
 CHAPTER HL 
 
 THE NEW DRAMATIS PERSONjE. 
 
 Queen Anne . 
 Her Succession 
 Character 
 
 Husband and children 
 Lady Marlborough . 
 Duke of Marlborougli 
 
 24 
 24 
 
 25 
 
 26 
 
 26 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents, xi 
 
 
 Character 
 
 Lord Godolphin, Lord High Treasurer 
 Prince Eugene (Eugenic von Savoie) 
 Heinsius. Grand Pensionary of Holland 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 ' THE GRAND ALLIANCE.* 
 
 The Emperor 
 
 The nine Electors .... 
 How they ranged themselves : 
 [a] On the French side . 
 
 Bavaria 
 
 Cologne 
 
 {b) On the side of the Grand Alliance 
 Brandenburg (kingdom of Prussia) 
 Bohemia . 
 Hanover . 
 The Palatinate . 
 (fr) Neutral . 
 Mayence . 
 Treves 
 Saxony 
 The central powers of the Grand Alliance 
 
 England and Holland 
 
 Other allies : 
 Minor princes of Germany and Denmark . 
 Also, after the first year, Savoy and Portugal, 
 deserted France 
 
 PAGE 
 . 26 
 . 29 
 . 30 
 
 * 3^ 
 
 who 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 OPENING OF THE W^AR. 
 
 Section I.— Marlborough in Flanders, 
 
 1702 His object 
 
 To clear the Netherlands of the French 
 
 32 
 33 
 
 33 
 33 
 33 
 33 
 
 33 
 33 
 33 
 33 
 
 j^ 
 3^ 
 33 
 34 
 34 
 
 34 
 
 35 
 
 41 
 41 
 
 If 
 
xii Chronological Table of Contents. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 1702 Result of the first campaign . . . . . 41 
 French cut off from lower valley of the Rhine. 
 
 Venloo and other towns taken . . . .41 
 Capture of Bonn on the Rhine and Huy on the 
 
 Meuse 42-43 
 
 Section II. — Campaigns hi Germany and elsewhere, 
 
 [a) On the Upper Rhine 
 
 Landau taken by Prince Lewis of Baden 
 {¥) In North Italy 
 
 Victory of Cremona won by Prince Eugene, and 
 passes into Tyrol secured 
 (f) In Bavaria 
 
 Imperialists routed by the French 
 [d) In West Indies 
 
 English under Admiral Benbow worsted 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents, xiii 
 
 43 
 43 
 43 
 
 43 
 
 44 
 44 
 44 
 
 Sectiox III.— .S>J'///. 
 
 {a) Failure of attack on Cadiz 45 
 
 \b) Treasure ships taken by the English at Vigo . 46 
 1704 \c) Earl of Gal way commands the allies against Duke 
 
 of Berwick 4^ 
 
 {d) Capture of Gibraltar by Sir George Rooke . 47 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 RISING IN THE CEVENNES. 
 
 The strength of the Huguenots in the valleys of the 
 
 Loire and the lower Rhone 
 
 The Camisards ( ' Wearers of the white frock ') 
 
 1703 Rise under Jean Cavalier and others 
 
 1684 The Dragonnades urged on by Madame de Main- 
 tenon 
 
 1704 Failure of English fleet to help the Camisards . 
 The weakness of the Empire in Hungary and Tran- 
 sylvania . . • • • 
 
 48 
 50 
 
 51 
 
 52 
 54 
 
 55 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 BLENHEIM. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 1704 Object of Lewis to attack Vienna . . . .56 
 Marlborough's plan — to strike across the Rhine, meet 
 Eugene, and prevent the junction of the French 
 
 armies in Bavaria 57 
 
 Battle of Blenheim 59 
 
 The results of the victory 64 
 
 The power of Lewis XIV. broken and prestige of 
 French arms destroyed 64 
 
 CHAPTER VIIL 
 
 LORD PETERBOROUGH. 
 
 His character # . 
 
 The provinces of Catalonia and Valencia chosen by 
 
 the allies as points of attack 
 
 Capture of Monjuich 
 
 1705 Capture of Barcelona 
 
 Exploits of Peterborough 
 
 65 
 
 67 
 69 
 70 
 
 72 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE YEAR OF VICTORY— -1706. 
 
 Section l.—RamilHes. 
 
 1706 Mayi23 The battle 7S 
 
 Its results 77 
 
 Fall of Brussels, Antwerp, Menin, Dendermonde 77-7^ 
 
 Section 1 1.— Turin. 
 
 Siege of Turin . . . • 
 1706 Sept. 7 Battle of Turin . 
 
 79 
 81 
 
 tlli 
 
XIV 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents. 
 
 Results of Turin 
 
 (i) Disheartening effect on French army 
 
 (2) The French driven from Piedmont . 
 
 (3) Naples cut off from France . 
 
 PAGE 
 . 81 
 . 81 
 . 82 
 
 . 82 
 
 Section lll.-^Barcclona and Madrid. 
 
 The French besiege Barcelona 82 
 
 The siege raised by Peterborough . . . .83 
 1706 Madrid entered by Earl of Galway .... 83 
 Success of the allies checked by the chivalrous loyalty 
 of the Spaniards to Philip ....•84 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE YEAR OF DISASTER— 1 707. 
 
 Neutrality of Charles XII. of Sweden secured by 
 
 Marlborough 86 
 
 1707 March The allies defeated by Duke of Berwick at 
 
 Almanza 
 
 Archduke Charles reduced to single province of 
 
 Catalonia "9 
 
 Naples secured by the Emperor .... 90 
 
 Failure of attack on Toulon 9° 
 
 Defeat of allies on Rhine by Villars . . . . 9^ 
 Sir Cloudeslcy Shovel lost off the Scilly Islands . 91 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 LATER FIGHTING IN THE LOW COUNTRIES. 
 
 Section l.—Oudcnardc and Lille. 
 
 Brabant inclining to French 
 
 Siege of Oudenarde 
 
 Eugene joins Marlborough 
 
 . 92 
 
 • 92 
 
 • 93 
 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents. 
 
 Section U.— Negotiations. 
 
 1708 July II Battle of Oudenarde . 
 
 Siege of I Jlle 
 
 Skirmish at Wynendale . . • • 
 Surrender of Lille 
 
 XV 
 
 I' AGE 
 
 . 93 
 
 • 95 
 ■ 96 
 
 • 97 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 later campaigns in SPAIN. 
 
 Section I.— The three Years that followed Aimama. 
 
 General Stanhope 
 
 1709 Port Mahon taken ...... 
 
 Duke of Orleans succeeds Berwick . 
 
 French withdrawn from Spain .... 
 
 1710 Battle of La Gudina 
 
 • 105 
 
 . 106 
 
 . 107 
 
 . 107 
 
 . 108 
 
 Section W.— The final Campaign. 
 
 Stanhope's advance .... 
 
 His victory at Almenara . 
 
 His victory at Saragossa . 
 
 The allies advance and occupy Madrid 
 
 They retreat to Toledo . 
 
 Return to Catalonia . . • • 
 
 English defeat at Brihuega 
 
 Drawn-battle of Villa Viciosa . 
 
 . 108 
 
 . 109 
 
 . no 
 
 IIO-III 
 
 . Ill 
 
 . 112 
 
 . 113 
 
 . 114 
 
 CHAPTER Xin. 
 the fortunes of parties. 
 
 The development of parties and their influences . 115 
 Opposite views of Whigs and Tories on the Revo- 
 lution and religious toleration . . . .116 
 
 '■'I'll 
 
XVI Chronological Table of Contents. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The queen inclines to the Tories as the Church 
 party "7 
 
 Her first Ministry Tory in the main . . . .117 
 Godolphin and Marlborough gradually go over to 
 the Whig camp 1 18 
 
 1703-1704 Occasional Conformity Bill brought forward 
 
 three times— its defeat in the Lords . . 118-119 
 Lord Somers the most eminent Lord . 
 Sunderland the most violent of the Wliig Junto 
 Abigail Hill comes on the scene .... 
 She su[)plants the Duchess of Marlborougli . 
 
 1708 Yet the Ministry is made more Whig by the enforced 
 resignation of Harley and St. John 
 Steady growth of Cabinet government 
 Life-command refused to Marlborough . 
 
 1710 Dr. Sacheverell's sermon 
 
 General election— Tory majority .... 
 
 Dismissal of Whigs 125 
 
 Occasional Conformity Bill passed .... 126 
 
 1711 
 
 120 
 121 
 121 
 122 
 
 122 
 123 
 124 
 125 
 
 I2S 
 
 I712 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 FAG-END OF THE WAR. 
 
 The two Tory chiefs— Harley. Earl of O.xford, 
 
 St. John, Viscount Bolingbroke . 
 Archduke Charles becomes Emperor 
 Marlborough's last campaign . 
 Expedition against Quebec 
 Marlborough's disgrace . 
 Death of Godolphin .... 
 Twelve Tory peers created 
 Ormond commander-in-chief . 
 English troops separated from the allies 
 Eugene still commands the ' road to Paris ' 
 July 24. Victory of French at Denain . 
 
 and 
 
 126-127 
 
 . 128 
 
 . ia8 
 
 . 129 
 
 . 129 
 
 . 130 
 
 • 130 
 
 . 130 
 
 . 131 
 
 . 131 
 
 . 132 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents, xvii 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 PEACE OF UTRECHT, 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Negotiations 132 
 
 1706 {a) After Ramillies 132 
 
 1709 {b) At the Hague 133 
 
 1710 \c) At Gertraydenburg 133 
 
 171 1 {d) At Utrecht .' i33 
 
 1713 March Peace of Utrecht signed 133 
 
 171 4 The Emperor makes a separate peace at Rastadt . 134 
 Results of the Peace of Utrecht .... 134 
 To France : 
 The Spanish monarchy left in the hands of the 
 
 Bourbons I34 
 
 To England : 
 The possessions of Gibraltar and Minorca, 
 Hudson's Bay Territory, Newfoundland, and 
 
 Nova Scotia i34 
 
 To Spain : 
 The loss of possessions in Italy and the Nether- 
 lands 135 
 
 To Prussia : 
 
 The acknowledgment of its status as a kingdom 136 
 To the Dutch : 
 Gain of a barrier in the Austrian Netherlands 
 
 against France 13^ 
 
 Arguments for the Treaty : 
 
 (a) The war a great burden to England and 
 increase of national debt 136 
 
 (b) Strength of patriotism in Spain enlisted on the 
 side of Philip V . 137 
 
 (c) The union of Spain and Austria more dangerous 
 than that of Spain and France .... i37 
 
 Against the Treaty : 
 
 {a) Necessity for seizing the opportunity of pre- 
 venting danger from P>ance for the future . 137 
 {b) Worthlessness of renunciations . . .137 
 (c) The scanty fruits of such splendid triumphs . 137 
 The war a just one, but should have been finished 
 
 after Ramillies ^3® 
 
 M. H. a 
 
 4 
 
xviii Chronological Table of Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE UNION WITH SCOTLAND. 
 
 Section \.—The Union itself. 
 
 1704 The Scotch Act of Security passed in om^osition 
 the English Act of Settlement 
 
 1706 Commission appointed to treat, with Lord Soniers 
 
 its president . . . • 
 
 1707 The Union accomplished 
 Opposition in Scotland . 
 Principles of representation 
 The Scotch law unchanged 
 Adoption of the Unicn Jack . 
 Good results of the Union 
 Compared with union with Ireland 
 
 SECTION II.— Attempt for the Pretender. 
 
 Chrottological Tabic of Contetits. xix 
 
 PACK 
 
 to 
 as 
 
 . IJO 
 
 . 140 
 . 141 
 . 142 
 
 . 143 
 . 143 
 
 • 144 
 
 • 144 
 
 1707 Jacobite rising . 
 
 Sketch of the old Pretender 
 Failure of the attempt 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 PETER THE GREAT AND CHARLES XII. 
 
 Section l.-^The North-Eastem State System. 
 View of Russia, Denmark, Sweden, and Poland 
 
 Section 11.— Peter the Great. 
 
 His early life 
 
 His policy 
 
 In pursuance of it he travels in Western Europe 
 He visits Holland and England 
 
 St. Petersburg founded 
 
 The Patriarchate abolished . . ■ • 
 
 . 14s 
 
 ■ 145 
 . 147 
 
 . 148 
 
 . 152 
 . 153 
 • IS3 
 
 . 154 
 . 155 
 . 156 
 
 European fashions introduced 
 The institution of the Tchin 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ■ 156 
 . 157 
 
 Section III.— Charles XII. 
 
 1697 Charles succeeds to the throne 158 
 
 His character "59 
 
 He fights Denmark. Poland, and Russia in succes- 
 sion . . . • ^°*^ 
 
 1700 His victory at Narva ^^ 
 
 He becomes the arbiter of Europe . 
 
 . 161 
 
 Section IV.—Pultcma. 
 
 1708 Charles marches to meet Mazeppa in the Ukraine . 163 
 
 1709 July 8 Battle of Pultowa ^H 
 
 The power of Charles XII. broken . . . .165 
 He takes refuge with the Turks . . . .165 
 Peter the Great crosses the Prath, and is defeated by 
 
 the Turks ^^5 
 
 1711 
 
 1718 
 
 1725 
 
 Section V.—£nd of Charles XI I. and of Peter. 
 
 Charles XII. expelled from Turkey . . . .166 
 Dec. II His death at the siege of Fredericshall . 167 
 Peter the Great makes a second journey through 
 
 Europe ' ^ 
 
 Feb. His death ^°° 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 the PROTESTANT SUCCESSION. 
 
 Measures to secure the succession of the nearest 
 
 Protestant heir 
 
 1597-1690 The Electress Sophia 
 
 Her mother Elizabeth, daughter of James I. . 
 
 Her father Frederick, Elector Palatine . 
 
 Her brother Prince Rupert 
 
 169 
 
 171 
 171 
 171 
 172 
 
 if 
 
 
J^Jfm^ 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents, 
 
 1714 
 
 Sketch of her hfe 
 
 The Jacobites the extreme wing of the Tory party 
 The Tory ministers charged with Jacobite leanings 
 
 Quarrels in the Ministry 
 
 The last week of Anne's life , 
 Previous career of Shrewsbury . . 
 His appointment as Lord High Treasurer 
 The Protestant succession secured . 
 
 1660-1728 Sketch of George I 
 
 His merits as a king for England . 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 END OF LEWIS XIV. 
 
 1715' Sept. I Death of Lewis XIV. 
 
 1643-1715 Events in England parallel with his reign 
 
 His later life clouded by trouble 
 
 Death of the Dauphin 
 
 Death of the Duke and Duchess of Burgundy . 
 
 Lewis XIV. 's reign an evil one for France 
 
 Policy of the Regent, the Duke of Orleans 
 
 1722 
 
 PAGE 
 
 . 174 
 
 . 175 
 . 176 
 
 . 176 
 
 . 177 
 
 . 178 
 
 . 178 
 
 • 179 
 
 . z8o 
 
 . 180 
 
 . 181 
 
 . x8i 
 
 . 181 
 
 . 182 
 
 . 183 
 
 . 185 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 
 
 Later career of the Duke of Marlborough 
 
 His death 
 
 Fate of the Catalonians . . • • 
 1716 Victor Amadeus becomes king of Sardinia 
 1724 Philip V. of Spain abdicates, but on the death of his 
 son resumes the government 
 
 Later events in the life of the Emperor Charles 
 1740 His death 
 
 185 
 186 
 186 
 186 
 
 187 
 187 
 188 
 
 Chronological Table of Contaits. xxi 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL. 
 SECTION I.— Population, Toums, Arch Hat 11 re. 
 
 FAGS 
 
 Population e of Anne roughly estimated at be- 
 
 tween five and seven millions . . • 188-189 
 Population and wealth greatest in the south and 
 
 east ^89 
 
 Important towns (London, Bristol, Norwich. York, 
 Exeter. Shrewsbury, Worcester, Derby, Notting- 
 ham, Canterbury) . . * . • • -^90 
 
 Steady growth of London ^9° 
 
 Sketch of London life of the period .... 191 
 
 The City and Westminster I9« 
 
 The London Exchange the centre of the commerce 
 
 of the world ^9^ 
 
 Sir C. Wren, the architect of St. Paul's . . .193 
 
 His style ^95 
 
 SirJohnVanbrugh, the architect . . . -195 
 
 Description of Bath . ^9^ 
 
 Section l\.— The Poor. Statistics. 
 Gradual improvement in the condition of the poor . 196 
 Pauperism in the reign of Anne . . . '198 
 Prices and wages ....••• ^99 
 
 Distribution of land ^99 
 
 Com the staple produce 20° 
 
 Wool next in importance 200 
 
 Cotton manufacture in its infancy .... 201 
 
 "Other manufactures ^°^ 
 
 High standard of comfort 202 
 
 Consumption of beer diminished by introduction of 
 
 tea and coffee ^°* 
 
 The ' Spectator ' on luxuries 203 
 
 Claret driven out by port 204 
 
 Section HI. — National Debt. 
 
 General principle of a debt 205 
 
 Later history of the debt 206 
 
 i 
 
^C^vll 
 
 Chronolo2ical Tabic of Contents, 
 
 Chronological Table of Contents, xxiii 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The policy of repudiation attributed to the Pretender 
 by the Whigs ^m 
 
 Section W. Strength of Parties. 
 
 The Tories, their strength in the country . . 208 
 
 The Whigs, their strength in the towns . . - 209 
 Oxford, the Tory university— Cambridge the Whig 209 
 The clergy below the present standard . . . 210 
 Their position improved by Queen Anne's Bounty . 210 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 LITERATURE. 
 
 Section {.^French Litcraiiirc. 
 
 Influence of patronage and rules of art . . .211 
 Literature greatest in first half of reign of Lewis XIV. 212 
 
 Strength of the drama 
 
 1622-1673 The comedies of Moliere 
 
 1606-1684 The tragedies of Comeille .... 
 
 1639-1697 The tragedies of Racine 
 
 Development of French prose 
 
 1627-1704 Absolutism in religion advocated by Bossuet . 
 1623-1662 Revolt of Pascal against this absolutism . 
 Reform advocated by the saintly Fenelon 
 Influence of French on English literature.— Later 
 reaction on French literature . . . 214-215 
 
 212 
 212 
 213 
 
 213 
 
 213 
 214 
 
 214 
 
 214 
 
 Section U.— English Literature. 
 
 Literature all-powerful and in close all 
 
 politics 
 
 1688-1744 Alexander Pope 
 
 171 1 • Essay on Criticism ' 
 
 1712 ' Rape of the Lock ' . 
 
 1715-1725 ' Homer ' 
 
 1732-1734 ' Essay on Man * . . . 
 
 Pope's style and influence 
 
 ance with 
 
 215 
 216 
 218 
 218 
 218 
 ai8 
 219 
 
 The age of Anne strongest in prose . . . 
 Parly spirit gives an impulse to pamphlet-writing . 
 
 1667-1745 Jonathan Swift 
 
 1704 ' Tale of a Tub ' 
 
 • Conduct of the Allies ' 
 
 1724 ' Drapier's Letters ' 
 
 1726 'Gulliver's Travels' 
 
 1 661-173 1 Daniel Defoe 
 
 •The True-born Englishman' 
 
 ' Shortest way w ith the Dissenters ' . . . . 
 1719 ' Robinson Cmsoe ' 
 
 Joseph Addison 
 
 1705 ' The Campaign ' . . • . . . ■ 
 
 Character of Addison 
 
 'Cato' 
 
 1671-1729 Sir Richard Steele . . . . • 
 1711 Joined by Addison in the • Taller' and the 'Spec 
 
 talor* 
 
 Influence of the ' Spectator ' on the future 
 
 Index , 
 
 PAGE 
 219 
 
 ■ZaJL 
 5ft St Jit- 
 
 . 222 
 
 • 223 
 
 • 223 
 . 223 
 
 . 224 
 . 225 
 
 • 225 
 . 226 
 . 227 
 . 228 
 . 229 
 . 229 
 
 230 
 231 
 
 233 
 
 I 
 \ 
 
I 
 
 ^,• 
 
 MAPS. 
 
 THE AGE OF ANNE, 
 
 ■«o*- 
 
 EUROPE, 1700 To face title page 
 
 Battle of Blenheim, August 13. 1704 
 
 Battle of Ramillies, May 23, 1706 
 
 Italy, 1700 . 
 
 The Netherlands 
 
 PAGE 
 60 
 
 . 75 
 
 to face 79 
 
 » 
 
 .f 91 
 
 Western Europe: showing the principal 
 changes effected by the Treaties of 
 Utrecht and Rastadt .... 
 
 Europe : illustrating the Wars of Charles 
 XII. and Peter the Great 
 
 jfr 
 
 149 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE SPANISH SUCCESSION. 
 
 In the last years of the seventeenth century the minds 
 of all European statesmen were turned towards Spain. 
 Spain had once been the most formidable The Spanish 
 of monarchies, dangerous to the peace of monarchy. 
 Europe. As far as this formidableness depended on 
 material resources and extent of territories, there was no 
 reason why she should not be so again. In the reign of 
 the Emperor Charles V., who was also known as Charles I. 
 of Spain, the Spanish king ruled not only over Spain, 
 but over the rich provinces of the Netherlands, over 
 large districts of Italy, and over undefined territories in 
 America, rich in silver mines. It is true that from his 
 son Philip II., husband of our Queen Mary, the provinces 
 of the Netherlands revolted, excited by his malignant 
 hostility against the Protestants. Some were successful 
 in their revolt, and fonned the country which, released 
 from the Spanish yoke, had since prospered under the 
 name of the United Provinces, or Holland. Portugal, 
 also, which Philip had seized, had again established 
 itself as a separate kingdom. France had wrested three 
 Jf.^. B 
 
The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1700. 
 
 provinces from Spain. But the greater part of the 
 dominions of King Philip were still joined together, Spam 
 and the Netherlands, Italy and the I"d.es • and the 
 crown of this ill-assorted monarchy was upon the head 
 
 of Charles II. ,. .„... 
 
 As long as he should continue to live, no anxiety 
 would be excited in the mind of any statesman. In mind 
 and body he was, perhaps, the feeblest man 
 Charks II. ;^ j^jg dominion. In infancy it had been 
 doubtful whether he could be reared. Ever since, he 
 had been an invalid ; he suffered from a "malformation of 
 his iaw which prevented the mastication of his food. 
 He ias'terribly ignorant, and as -P;"'!!;"-.- "^ 
 ionorant. The kingdom of Spain had been misgoverned 
 before but in his time it was going to ruin. Every 
 deoartment of the State was in disorder ; the law courts, 
 ZtZs'L finances. As long as he could be kept 
 Le, nof^reign statesman would feel in the least afraid of 
 Spailish ambition ; but his death was imminent, and great 
 uneasiness was felt as to the succession to h>s crovvn. 
 
 Charles was childless. The crown would therefore 
 devolve upon the descendants either of one of his sisters 
 or of his aunt. Their respective claims will 
 Sfmants. be best explained by a reference to the ac- 
 companying table. According to the ordinary; rules of 
 inTerkancetthe dauphin, as son of his eldest sister, had 
 the best ight ; but Lewis XIV. and Maria Theresa had 
 on their marriage renounced for their posterity all claims 
 ^o the succession, and ratified this -""^ ^J J^ 
 most solemn oaths. On the marriage of Leopold the 
 Tr^perotto her sister, a similar renunciation had been 
 Tade Though, according to the notions of the day, the 
 ^aAs were less sacred, and the agreement was regarded 
 as less binding. The issue of this marriage was a 
 d^uchter, who had married the Elector of Bavaria. Her 
 
 to 
 
 
 III 
 
 The Spanish Succession. 
 
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 claim would pass to her son, Joseph, the Electoral Prince 
 of Bavaria. The third claimant was the emperor him- 
 self, the cousin of King Charles. His claim was the 
 weakest by descent, but the strongest in that, at his 
 mother's marriage, no renunciation had been effected. 
 
 The King of France and the emperor were fully 
 aware that an absolute union of the Spanish Crown 
 either with that of France or with the 
 Second sons, ^^^y^^ ^ould never be permitted. The 
 dauphin, therefore, and the emperor, agreed each to 
 waive his right in favour of his second son. The three 
 claimants stood forth as Philip, Duke of Anjou ; Joseph, 
 the Electoral Prince ; and the Archduke Charles. 
 
 It was manifest that it would be best for the peace of 
 Europe that the crown should pass to some prince of 
 small power, or one whose power was distant 
 France. ^^^^^ Spain. Anxiety was especially felt lest 
 
 it should fall to a French prince ; for France was now 
 occupying the position in Europe once held by Spain, 
 and the prospect of a union of the two countries under 
 princes of the same family caused a genuine alarm, 
 especially amongst Protestant statesmen. Lewis XIV. 
 is called in French history * the great king.' He was 
 the founder of that pohcy of the aggrandisement of France 
 at the expense of her neighbours which has marked 
 French history since. Earlier French statesmen and' 
 French kings had the notion of an equilibrium in 
 European politics, France being one amongst equal 
 States ; but Lewis wished to give her supremacy. 
 Owing 'to her wise interference on behalf of toleration in 
 Germany, in the great Thirty Years' War, France had, 
 about the time of the accession of Lewis, attained very 
 considerable power. By unscrupulous encroachments, 
 by interfering in the affairs of Germany— weakened as 
 She was by her long struggle— and by vigorous fighting 
 
 A.D. 1697. The Spanish Succession, J 
 
 under most skilful generals, Lewis had increased that 
 power. There was, indeed, reason to fear for the liberties 
 of Europe if Spain were joined to France ; nor was there 
 room for doubt that this power would be hostile to the 
 cause of Protestantism. The wise toleratic^n which 
 Henry of Navarre had granted to the Huguenots by the 
 Edict of Nantes had been cancelled by the revocation of 
 that charter. The influence of the Jesuits was plainly 
 visible in the French Court. 
 
 Lewis had one great opponent, William of Orange. 
 His ancestor, William the Silent, had opposed Philip of 
 Spain whose power was dangerous to Europe wmiam of 
 and to Protestantism ; and young William ^'"^sc 
 devoted his life to the same cause— the defence of the 
 liberties of Europe, especially in religion. At first he 
 stood forward only as the ruler of Holland ; but when 
 the Revolution placed him on the throne of England, that 
 country^, which, under Charles IL, had been but the 
 vassal, the paid servant of France, resumed her rightful 
 position at the head of the Protestant cause. It is not 
 necessary here to recapitulate the different events that 
 mark stages in the contest between William and Lewis. 
 The last tedious war, in which England had, for the most 
 part, been successful at sea, and France on land, was 
 ended with the Treaty of Ryswick, which, whilst it 
 acquiesced in many of Lewis's conquests, yet settled the 
 Jacobite question. Lewis had undertaken to recognise 
 WilUam as King of England, and never more to assist 
 the exiled James in his attempts to regain the crown. 
 
 The peace was eagerly welcomed. England and 
 France alike ucre tired of war ; and the rulers of the 
 two countries, reluctant that the peace of p^^^^^^ 
 Europe should be disturbed by this new Ryswick. 
 question with respect to the succession to the ^''^' '^^" 
 - crown of Spain, desired to arrange it without fighting. 
 
 III |iiiiiiiiitiiiillli|'i|iiiiilBi 
 
The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1698. 
 
 MjL;,; 
 
 ll 
 
 i 
 i 
 
 li 
 
 The negotiations between William and Lewis upon 
 this subject were long and anxious. They began when 
 First parti- Bentinck, Duke of Portland, once William's 
 tion treaty. greatest friend, and still one of his most 
 trusted advisers, was sent on an embassy to Versailles. 
 They continued when Tallard, a distinguished French 
 nobleman and general, was sent by Lewis on a special 
 embassy to England. They were brought to a point at 
 Loo, William's favourite Dutch palace, to which, when 
 released from cares of State in England, he always 
 hastened. The result was the First Treaty of Partition. 
 When Lewis found that the English and the Dutch 
 would not consent to the Spanish dominion passing to a 
 French prince, even if shorn of some of its territories, he 
 agreed that it should fall to the Electoral Prince of 
 Bavaria, provided that France received an equivalent for 
 this concession. The price was Naples and Sicily, as a 
 separate kingdom for the Duke of Anjou, and the 
 province of Guipuscoa, in the north of Spain, to be added 
 to France. The Archduke Charles was to have the 
 
 Milanese. 
 
 /Tlad the King of Spain died, as was expected, soon 
 after the signing of this treaty, there is little doubt it 
 Death of would have been quietly carried out. But, 
 Joseph, and jnstead of the death of King Charles, who 
 ttortrea^Jr!'" had long been ill, and whose death was 
 constantly expected, the young prince Joseph fell ill of 
 the small-pox and died at Brussels. All the agreements 
 that had been made were useless ; and the old difficulty 
 returned. Negotiations began again (1700). The claim- 
 ants were now reduced to two— the dauphin's son, Philip 
 of Anjou; and the Archduke Charles, the son of the 
 emperor. The price of France therefore rose. England 
 and Holland supported the claim of the Archduke 
 Charles. It was therefore at length determined that the 
 
 A.D. 1700. The Spanish Stiecesswn, 7 
 
 archduke should be King of Spain ; that Philip of 
 Anjou should have Naples and Sicily as before ; that not 
 only Guipuscoa but also the Milanese should fall to 
 France; and it was intended that France should 
 exchange the latter province for Lorraine, which lay 
 more convenient. 
 
 It was natural that these treaties should produce 
 o-reat soreness in Spain. The Spaniards had long been 
 at the head of a great power in Europe ; and in-itation of 
 now their territories were to be divided, and Spain, 
 their consent was not even asked. The Castilians were 
 the proudest of all Spaniards, and had long been the 
 ruUng class in the country ; they felt it the most. The 
 dishonour to Spain was well expressed in a famous 
 political satire, published towards the end of Queen 
 Anne's reign, 'Arbuthnot's History of John Bull,' from 
 which the popular name for an Englishman is taken. 
 Old Lord Strutt, the King of Spain, is dying ; and there 
 assemble with measuring poles and ink-horns to divide 
 his estate, Lewis Baboon (France), his neighbour, John 
 Bull (England), his tailor, and Nick Frog, (Holland), his 
 runaway servant. But the real question as to the 
 iniquity of the partition is not settled here. The peace 
 of Europe was more important than the honour of the 
 Castilians, and the object of the treaty was to keep the^ 
 nations at peace. 
 
 The soreness in Spain, however, vented itself in anger 
 not against Lewis, but against William. The ill-feel- 
 ing with respect to him, unfortunately, was ^^^ 
 aggravated by another matter. The Spaniards 
 claimed for themselves the whole coast of Central 
 America. It had occurred some years before to a 
 visionary Scotchman, named William Paterson, who had 
 not always shown the qualities of a visionary, for he was 
 the founder of the Bank of England, to lead a settlement 
 
 I 
 
 
 II 
 
8 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A. p. 1700. 
 
 I 
 
 
 to Darien, on the Isthmus of Panama. He represented 
 in glowing terms to his countrymen the splendour of 
 the country, where Nature produced her fruits little 
 assisted by the labour of man, and the almost certain 
 wealth that would accrue to Scotland. Paterson pre- 
 dicted that the whole trade with India would be diverted 
 from its existing channels and pass across the Isthmus 
 of Panama. The scheme created the greatest enthu- 
 siasm throughout Scotland. Everyone was anxious to 
 obtain shares in the company which was formed. Two 
 ships were fitted out, and the Darien Company obtained a 
 charter from William's representatives, the government 
 in Scotland. The expedition failed, as it was sure to fail, 
 seeing that the settlers knew nothing of the climate or of 
 the country in which they were to settle. It failed utterly 
 and entirely. Many fell victims to disease and starva- 
 tion ; a few escaped with their lives. This failure brought 
 the ill-will of Scotland against William ; the attempt 
 roused the ill-will of England, jealous for her Indian trade, 
 as well as the fierce anger of Spain. 
 
 Moreover, the English people did not want to inter- 
 fere in the affairs of Spain. They were tired of fighting, 
 - . . and on that account hostile to the policy of 
 
 Opposition ' ^ 
 
 to William William. A House of Commons had been 
 m England, returned, pledged to a considerable reduction 
 of the army, and determined to secure that in the 
 English army there should be no foreigners. William's 
 favourite Dutch regiment, the Blue Guards, had to leave 
 England. There was also indignation against WiUiam 
 because he had granted to his Dutch friends estates that 
 had been forfeited to the Crown. The opposition to the 
 king had, indeed, been carried so far that he threatened 
 to resign the crown, and had actually written the speech 
 with which he should resign it, a speech which is still 
 extant. Fortunately he never carried out this threat ; 
 
 
 A.D. 1700. The Spanish Succession, 9 
 
 but the conduct of the Spaniards, singling him out for 
 their indignation about the Partition Treaties, shows that 
 his power was not the same three years after as it had 
 been when the Peace of Ryswick w^as signed. The 
 Spaniards knew well the humiliation which the Parlia- 
 ment was inflicting on him. 
 
 The ruling classes in Spain, whose one great thought 
 was how to keep the vast monarchy together, found it 
 necessary to select one of the two claimants, j^e will of 
 and selected the more powerful. There were Charles ii. 
 two parties at the Spanish Court, the larger and more 
 earnest party in favour of the French succession, and 
 another in favour of the House of Austria. But the 
 French party prevailed. When the event so long ex- 
 pected at last took place, and King Charles died, it was 
 found that he had recently signed a will, by which he left 
 his kingdom undivided to Philip, Duke of Anjou, the 
 second son of the dauphin. William was in no position 
 to resist. Lewis, bound neither by his oaths of re- 
 nunciation nor by the sacredness of treaties, without 
 hesitation permitted his grandson to accept the inherit- 
 ance ; and the temper in which he did so was well 
 illustrated by the speech with which he is said to have 
 dismissed him to take up his crown — II n'y a plus de 
 Pyr^ti^es — * The Pyrenees exist no longer.' p^^j^p y. 
 Philip went to Spain, where he was crowned, of Spain. 
 and quietly received by the people as Philip V. 
 /it would seem as if Lewis were going to have his own 
 way ; and if he had been careful neither to offend the 
 people of England, nor to alarm the Dutch, , . 
 It is more than possible that there would have three mis- 
 been no war. William, and the leading states- ***^*^^" 
 men of Holland, might have feh indignation at the undoing 
 of their work, and might have given their sympathies to 
 the Archduke Charles. But they were powerless, until 
 
['I 
 
 10 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1701. 
 
 |J 
 
 Lewis committed a series of mistakes, which brought the 
 war upon him. (i.) When Phihp went to Spain, his 
 grandfather, by letters patent, reserved his right of suc- 
 cession to the French Crown. By this the fear of a union 
 between the two countries was increased. (2.) King 
 Lewis put French garrisons into towns of the Spanish 
 Netherlands, showing that he regarded those towns as 
 now so closely united with France, that he might treat 
 them as his own. He even proposed that the Nether- 
 lands should be ceded to him, as his government was so 
 much nearer and more convenient than that of Spain. 
 By this the fears of the Dutch were excited. But, how- 
 ever strongly William might feel this, the English people 
 were still indifferent. (3.) When James II., the exiled 
 King of England, died at St. Germains, Lewis, visiting 
 him on his death-bed, was moved to promise that he 
 would recognise his son as the King of England. On 
 the death of James, his son James, usually known as the 
 Old Pretender, was, with all due formahty, recognised at 
 Versailles ; and the Enghsh people were at last aroused. 
 The English ambassador was recalled from France ; the 
 French ambassador quickly received orders to leave 
 London. The Parliament that had grudged supplies to 
 William was dissolved. Amid the greatest excitement, 
 another was elected, giving a large majority to the friends 
 of William, and the country in many ways was now as 
 eager as it had previously been disinclined for war. 
 
 For such an occasion as this William had waited. 
 However much he might deplore that the peace of Europe 
 should once more be broken— although he 
 AmaS"e of knew that his own health was feeble, and that 
 the Hague, j^^ ^^^j^j ^^^ jiyg m\xz\i longer, the stern pur- 
 pose of his life did not desert him. That purpose had 
 been opposition to the growing power of Lewis. Since 
 the death of King Charles he had laboured to excite 
 
 A.D. 1702. The Spanish Succession, 
 
 II 
 
 resistance to France among the European powers. The 
 backwardness of the EngUsh had tied his hands ; but 
 now, through the chivalrous folly or insolence of Lewis, 
 this difficulty had been removed. The league of the 
 European powers, known as the Grand AlHance, was 
 revived, the objects of which were to place the Archduke 
 Charles on the throne of Spain, and to keep down the 
 power of France. It declared first, that France was 
 not to retain the Netherlands, nor to acquire the West 
 Indies, and secondly, that the Crowns of France and 
 Spain were never to be united. 
 
 But the Grand Alliance was no sooner formed than 
 its creator died. William had never been a strong man, 
 he had suffered from many complaints, and ^^^^^ ^^ 
 was hardly ever free from asthma. His wiiiiam. 
 indomitable spirit had carried him through ^•''- '7«** 
 scenes of toil and fatigue which would have brought even 
 strong men low. His restless energy and his unceasing 
 work had at last worn him out. All his doctors told 
 him to prepare for death, and indeed he was ready for it. 
 * You know,' he said to a friend, * that I never feared 
 death ; there have been times when I should have wished 
 it ; but, now that this great new prospect is opening 
 before me, I do wish to stay here a little longer.' He 
 was riding on his favourite horse Sorrel in Hampton- 
 court Park, when the horse stumbled upon a mole-hill. 
 The king was thrown, and broke his collar-bone. An 
 illness ensued, which ended in a fever, and the fever 
 proved fatal. 
 
 About the character of William the Third many a 
 battle has been fought. His name has been made a cry 
 wherewith to rouse animosities which are ^^ 
 
 - v«har«Lcter. 
 
 better left at peace. As no man is perfect, so 
 
 in William's government, doubtless, mistakes may be 
 
 found : perhaps they deserve even a harsher name. But 
 
 
12 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1702. 
 
 the service that he rendered to England is undoubted 
 and priceless, and it was not well repaid. During his 
 later years his life was embittered by opposition from the 
 English, who no longer felt the pressing need of his 
 services against Stuart tyranny. He was constantly 
 reproached with favouring his foreign friends. Would 
 Englishmen have thought better of him if he had left 
 his old and faithful friends unrewarded ? 
 
 It is not, however, only or chiefly as an English king 
 that William is to be judged — rather as a European 
 . ^ statesman. As our fathers fought against 
 
 A Euro- * * 
 
 pean states- Napoleou to preserve the liberties of Europe, 
 ™^"' and therewith our own, so William, from his 
 
 earliest years to his death-bed, held constantly before 
 him the one thought, how best to keep the power of 
 France within bounds. Germany had been left so 
 divided at the peace of Westphalia that there was no 
 one great State in Europe which could resist Lewis. 
 The only chance was an alliance : but for an alliance it 
 was necessary that there should be some one to propose 
 and to maintain it ; one who could humour this ally, and 
 persuade that ; one who, penetrated with the greatness of 
 the cause, could forgive petty insults, and by his own 
 warmth make up for the coldness of others. Such an one 
 was William. 
 
 Though William died, his work lived on. The 
 machine, it has been said, was put together on true prin- 
 ciples, and it continued in motion, though the master- 
 workman was gone. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 LEWIS XIV. 
 
 It is impossible to understand any period of history 
 without bearing in mind the character of the earlier 
 
 A.D. 1643*8. 
 
 Lewis XIV. 
 
 13 
 
 times. Although this little work is intended as a history 
 of only one and that a short period, the first fourteen years 
 of the last century— it is advisable to give some nq period 
 account of the years that preceded it. The isolated, 
 war, which gave the chief significance to the period, was 
 the fifth and last act of a long political and military 
 drama, in which, with almost poetical justice, the villain of 
 the play receives his deserts. Of this drama, France 
 and all that borders on France is the theatre. The chief 
 actor is the King of France. 
 
 Lewis XIV. succeeded to the throne in 1643, being 
 then only a little boy. He died in 17 14. During almost 
 all the seventy-two years of his reign France R^ig^, of 
 was at war. There were five general treaties of Lewis XIV. 
 pacification, which mark five stages in the reign, and form 
 the termination of the five acts in the drama. They are 
 called the treaties of Westphalia, Aix-la-Chapelle, Nym- 
 wegen, Ryswick, and Utrecht. Of the last of these, a 
 much fuller acco'unt will be found in its place further on 
 in this volume. The earlier history will be best followed 
 by keeping these treaties as dividing points, and filling 
 up the intervals. 
 
 The Peace of Westphalia was the peace which ended 
 the Thirty Years' War. By judicious interference in the 
 later part of that war France had been able p^^^ ^j. 
 to gain her object. Germany was divided Westphalia, 
 into many independent states, jealous of each ^■^- ^'^' 
 other. By the treaties a balance of power was estab- 
 lished in Germany between the two forms of religion, the 
 Roman Catholic and the Protestant. The Protestant 
 party consisted, moreover, of two sections, who bitterly 
 opposed each other — the Lutherans and the Calvinists. 
 The result was, that Germany was weak, and that France 
 had no danger or shadow of danger to fear from that 
 side. It was not until 1870 that Germany recovered 
 
 to • 
 
H 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1661. 
 
 ' If 
 
 i ■ >■■.> 
 
 from the exhaustion and disunion which were the cruel 
 and lasting effects of the Thirty Years' War. 
 
 As Lewis was so young on succeeding to his father's 
 throne, he was, of course, at first merely a nominal ruler. 
 The work of his predecessors, and of the min- 
 Minority. \^^^-^^ ^vho govemed France during his minority, 
 prepared the way for his future policy of ambition. On 
 the death of Mazarin, the greatest of these regents, 
 Lewis, then aged twenty-three, came to his council of 
 ministers and informed them, much to their astonishment, 
 that henceforth he would manage his own affairs. From 
 1661, until his death, Lewis shaped his own pohcy, and is 
 alone responsible for it. He had able ministers and was 
 well served by them ; but he was their master. This 
 policy can only be described as a course of unvarying 
 ambition, and of perpetual attempts to enlarge and exalt 
 France at the expense of her neighbours. 
 
 In the history of some countries the personal char- 
 acter of the sovereign is not an important element in 
 Character of calculations. The pohcy of England for 
 LeSfxiv. several years wavered less and was more 
 vigorously carried out when the feeble Anne was on the 
 throne, than under the energetic and able William. But 
 with French history the case is different, especially with 
 Lewis XIV. mtat, c'est moi I 'The State, I am the 
 State ! ' was his favourite motto, which he carried out to 
 the letter, so that his reign may be regarded as a perfect 
 embodiment of absolutism. His best quality, and one 
 most befitting his position, though not too common 
 amongst kings, was industry. He was indefatigable in 
 the details of work. Indeed, he needed all his industry 
 since he took upon himself the work which had before 
 been done by several Secretaries of State. He had 
 capacity also,—* enough,' said Mazarin, a competent judge, 
 * for four kings and one honest man.' Some writers have. 
 
 A.D. 1667. 
 
 Lewis XIV. 
 
 IS 
 
 credited him with the virtues of generosity and religion. 
 His generosity, however, was only a form of pride ; his 
 religion was bigotry. When James was exiled from 
 England, Lewis received him with magnificence, and 
 provided him with a palace as a residence. But such 
 generosity cost him nothing, and it was pleasant to have 
 kings at his board. His religion was a religion of ex- 
 ternals. Had he been a sincere Catholic he could not 
 have treated the Pope with the insolence which he showed 
 towards him. Had he been possessed at all by the real 
 spirit of religion, it must have interfered with his cruelty, 
 with his indifference to the sufferings of subjects or foes, 
 with his reckless and insatiable ambition. * By that sin 
 fell the angels.' There is an ambition which might seem 
 almost worth the price of an angel's fall, but the French 
 king's ambition was only to add to his territory^, rood after 
 rood, wrested with or without pretext from his neighbour. 
 In the furtherance of his ambition he was entirely without 
 scruple. 
 
 In the forty years that intervened between Lewis' real 
 accession to power and the close of the cen- 
 tury, there were three great wars besides mmor 
 raids. 
 
 The first was undertaken against Spain for the main- 
 tenance of a claim upon the Duchy of Brabant. There 
 was a law in Brabant that all the issue of a First War. 
 first marriage, female as well as male, should fo" Brabant. 
 succeed to a fief or an estate before even the 1667. 
 sons of a second marriage. In virtue of this law, upon 
 the death of the King of Spain and the accession of his 
 son Charles, the weak and sickly prince, whose death 
 caused the contest that filled the commencement of the 
 next century, and who was then an infant, Lewis laid 
 claim to the duchy of Brabant and to other provinces of 
 the Netherlands in right of his wife, who was Charles's 
 
i6 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1667. 
 
 \% 
 
 half-sister. The claim was bad for two reasons. Firstly, 
 the law applied only to private property, and had never 
 been held to apply to the sovereign. Secondly, as has 
 been said, before Lewis's marriage to the Spanish prin- 
 cess, solemn renunciation had been made of all rights 
 which might pass to him through it. But on this, as on 
 the later occasion, the arbitrary Lewis did not allow such 
 trifles as oaths or treaties to hinder him from acting as 
 he pleased. He had a strong army, and might with him 
 was enough. But opposition appeared where he least 
 
 expected it. 
 
 During the seventeenth century England was under 
 the dominion of the Stuarts, whose foreign policy cannot 
 En lish bedescribed as glorious or successful. During 
 
 foreign the greater part of their reign, the struggle 
 
 Seventeenth with their Parliaments gave them neither leisure 
 century. ^^^ opportunity for foreign affiiirs. Whilst the 
 
 Stuarts were anxious to rule without Parliaments, to be 
 kings indeed, like the French kings, and whilst they were 
 meeting with strong opposition from Englishmen who 
 preferred the old lines of the Constitution, it was not 
 likely that they would engage in foreign war. For wars 
 cost money, and as the raising of money was their diffi- 
 culty, they were naturally determined to ask for as little 
 as possible. The sympathy of the people of England 
 was ver>^ largely with the Protestants of the Continent. 
 Remembering the greatness of Elizabeth's England, the 
 people would very gladly have seen their country take 
 her place at the head of the Protestant cause. When the 
 Thirty Years' War broke out, they would gladly have 
 seen James send support to Elizabeth, his beautiful 
 daughter, for one winter Queen of Bohemia. Four times 
 during the century England came thus to the front, under 
 Ehzabeth, Ohver Cromwell, Sir Wilham Temple, and 
 William of Orange. 
 
 A.l). 1668. 
 
 Lewis XIV. 
 
 17 
 
 On the third of these our attention must be fixed now. 
 Sir William Temple might have made his name one of 
 the greatest names amongst the statesmen of ^he Tri le 
 England. But he did not enjoy the turmoil Aiiiancif *^ 
 of parliamentary struggles, and was fonder of learned 
 leisure than of office. After showing ver>^ distinguished 
 talents for diplomacy, he shrank from the effort without 
 which great names cannot be made. It was however he 
 who, at this time, when English ambassador at the 
 Hague, conceived the idea of the Triple Alliance, and 
 carried it into execution. 1668 is the only year in the 
 reign of Charles II. on which an Enghshman can look 
 back without a feeling of shame. England, Holland, and 
 Sweden, the three chief Protestant powers of the north of 
 Europe, were leagued together to resist the continued 
 growth of France, which they regarded as dangerous to 
 their interests and to liberty. The formation of the 
 League was sufficient to prevent the separation of Bra- 
 bant from Spain, though in other respects the terms 
 which it obtained were not hard for France. 
 Yet the French king chafed under the Peace aSL 
 of Aix-la-Chapelle. Chapelk. 
 
 He thought the best way to treat England was to 
 buy her king, and by the secret Treaty of Dover Lewis 
 bought Charles. The price paid was a sum .p 
 of money annually as a pension, and a J>^S 
 promise to help him with French troops, if the English 
 Parliament proved troublesome. But against Holland 
 the revenge of Lewis took the shape of one of the worst, 
 because one of the most causeless, wars in history. His 
 army invaded Holland, which was not ready 
 for him, being distracted by party spirit. One wSon^?' 
 party, under the Grand Pensionary, De Witt, "'^"^'i- 
 was for yielding to so powerful a foe ; but the terms 
 that Lewis asked were so outrageous, that the mob in 
 
 M. H. c 
 
m 
 
 l8 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1672- 
 
 A.D. 1678. 
 
 Lewis XIV. 
 
 19 
 
 Amsterdam rose in fury, and brutally murdered De 
 Witt The other party regarded as their leader a young 
 man, to whose family Holland owed priceless services, 
 but not services which could surpass those which, from 
 this time forward, he himself proceeded to render to 
 ^.„. Holland and to Europe. William of Orange 
 
 Oran^° devoted himself to the task of opposing 
 Lewis, the enemy of his country, the enemy of his faith, 
 the enemy of freedom. His heroic ardour, always 
 keenest when danger seemed darkest, inspired his coun- 
 tr>'men to resistance. But so overwhelming seemed the 
 force of the enemy that the Dutch were very near despair. 
 The proposal was seriously entertained by them to leave 
 their country, and, sailing away in their numerous ships 
 to the Dutch possessions in the East, there to estabhsh a 
 new country for themselves. ' There the Dutch Com- 
 monwealth might commence a new and more glorious 
 existence, and might rear, under the Southern Cross, 
 amidst the sugar canes and nutmeg trees, the Exchange 
 of a wealthier Amsterdam, and the Schools of a more 
 
 learned Leyden.*^ 
 
 This proposal was not adopted, though a resolution 
 almost as heroic was carried out. A great part of Holland 
 lies beneath the level of the sea, from which 
 the land has been rescued by the labour of 
 man Huge dykes or sea-walls have been erected 
 strong enough to stand against the force of the sea, and 
 high enough to keep out the highest tide. These it was 
 now determined to open, and to sacrifice the labour of 
 centuries rather than submit to the invader. The waters 
 were let in upon the land, and Holland became like a great 
 sea from which only the towns stood out. The French 
 troops were not prepared for this contingency, nor pro- 
 
 1 Macaulay. 
 
 Cutting of 
 the dykes. 
 
 vided with a flotilla of boats. Before the new defender, 
 the waves, they retreated. It is painful to an Englishman 
 to reflect that during this display of heroism his country, 
 with its king in French pay, was on the side of France, 
 though the Pariiament shortly afterwards compelled the 
 king to separate from the alliance, and, before the war 
 ended, had certainly shown a change of policy in sanction- 
 ing the marriage of William of Orange to Princess Mary, 
 the king's niece. 
 
 The war thus shamelessly begun became a European 
 war, into the details of which this is not the place to 
 enter. It was ended with the Treaty of ^ 
 Nymwegen, which aggrandised France chiefly Nymwegen. 
 at the expense of Spain. This peace may be UwiftS 
 regarded as the zenith of Lewis's career. It <^'"**=^^- 
 was after it that courtiers, who knew not wherein true 
 greatness lies, hailed him with the name of Great. This 
 title was formally bestowed on him by the magistrates of 
 Paris. His later treaties mark losses of France rather 
 than gain even in territory : certainly the wars that they 
 closed showed loss of glory. 
 
 The ancients believed that too great prosperity 
 brought with it the wrath of the gods, and the reason of 
 this belief, probably, is that those who gain 
 great success cease to exercise the vigilance ^*'"^'*''- 
 that ensures it, and become careless. It seemed to be a 
 special characteristic of Lewis XIV. that success en- 
 gendered an insolence which seems to us almost like 
 madness ; the madness of one whom, according to the 
 proverb, the gods will to destroy. With mere ordinary 
 care, as has been already shown, he might, later in his 
 reign, have avoided the war of the Spanish Succession ; 
 but the insolence that is born of triumph made him insult 
 the English people and their king. So now, in the 
 
20 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1681- 
 
 A.D. 1685, 
 
 Lewis XIV* 
 
 2% 
 
 4 
 
 interval of peace which followed the Treaty of Nymwegen, 
 and which may be compared rather to a sick man's 
 broken slumbers than to the quiet sleep of 
 ?omsoP'"^" the healthy, he was guilty of three acts, all 
 madness. unjustifiable and all unnecessary, which 
 brought ruin upon his head. 
 
 The first was the seizure of Strassburg. 
 In the cessions that were made to France by the Peace 
 of Nymwegen was included all the territory belonging to 
 certain towns. Lewis intended this to be con- 
 St/a!sburg° strued favourably to himself, and instituted 
 Chambers of Re-union, composed exclusively of French- 
 men, to decide what territories had at any time belonged 
 to these tow^ns. Under cover of their decisions he made 
 many additions to his dominions. One, more daring 
 than the rest, was nothing less than the important city 
 of Strassburg, a free city of the empire. Whilst Lewis 
 declared through his ambassador at the Imperial Court 
 that nothing was meant, a French army, of 40,000 men, 
 approached Strassburg, as if for a review, and before any 
 assistance could be sent from Germany (if any could 
 have been sent by a country so divided) the city yielded 
 to the French. There were only 500 soldiers within : 
 the citizens were at the time stricken with typhus fever, 
 and but few could bear arms. Lewis's Minister of War 
 was present with the army, under whose instructions the 
 fortifications were strengthened by no less an engineer 
 than Vauban himself 
 
 If the first act of Lewis's madness was an outrage on 
 2. Revoca- the Stranger, the second was a violation of 
 tion of Edict justice against his own subjects. It was the 
 i68^.^"'''" revocation of the Edict of Nantes. 
 
 A centur>' earUer France was torn by civil wars, 
 based upon religious differences. The Huguenots, or 
 French Protestants, were not ver>' numerous, but they 
 
 were very earnest and zealous. At length it chanced that 
 the rightful successor to the throne was upon their side, 
 so that their party, materially strengthened ^^ ^^.^^ 
 by the addition of those who were in favour 
 of the rightful king, whatever his creed might be, and 
 helped also by his valour and generalship, gained the 
 upper hand. But Henry of Navarre found that it would 
 be more for the interests of the whole people that he 
 should accept the religion of the majority. He became 
 a Catholic, but he did not forget his old friends. By the 
 Edict of Nantes he guaranteed freedom of worship for 
 the Huguenots, and the religious wars ceased. (1598.) 
 
 Lewis XIV. had by this time fallen very much under 
 the influence of Madame de Maintenon, who was a 
 bigoted Roman Catholic, and a furious persecution 
 antagonist of the Huguenots. She persuaded and emigra- 
 Lewis to revoke the edict of his grandfather, mTgSenots. 
 and apparently after some hesitation he ^^'^' 
 yielded to her entreaties. A persecution commenced, 
 which drove the Huguenots out of the land, for they were 
 not strong enough to resist. France, m this way, lost many 
 peaceful and industrious citizens, who carried their skill 
 and industry into other countries, especially to England 
 and to Holland. The silk- weavers of Spitalfields, where 
 there is still a street called Fleur-de-lys, are descendants 
 of the Huguenot emigrants. Canterbury, Norwich, and 
 other places received colonies of them. Men, also, of a 
 higher rank than the weavers, with names famous in 
 hteiature, were amongst the emigrants. And not only 
 men of peace, but skilful and practised generals, and 
 many soldiers, left the country that repaid their services 
 so ungenerously, and, joining her foes, were found in 
 later battles commanding or serving against France. 
 
 Nor yet have we finished count of the injury that the 
 revocation of ^ the tolerant edict brought on France. We 
 
22 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1688- 
 
 A.p. 1697. 
 
 LrdJts XIV. 
 
 23 
 
 
 must also include the rising in the Cevennes, an insur- 
 rection of the persecuted Protestants who lived in the 
 The Ce- Cevennes Mountains, in the south of France, 
 
 vennes. jj^jg ^ook place at a time when France was 
 
 hard pressed by external enemies, and increased her 
 difficulties in repelling them. 
 
 But as if these two acts were insufficient, Lewis added 
 to them a third, which was as ill-timed as it was cruel. 
 
 Charles II. of England, who had been a confederate 
 of Lewis, was dead. His brother and successor, James, 
 was still more inclined to Lewis, for he was 
 ReJoiution. a Catholic, heart and soul. During the 
 A.D. 1688. whole of his short reign he was making 
 attempts to subvert the English Church, and at length 
 the English people were unable longer to endure them. 
 In the early part of 1688 they were beginning to look 
 hopefully across the water to William of Orange, son-in- 
 law and nephew of the king. When, forty years earlier, 
 the Stuarts had been forcing their will upon the English 
 people, there had been no prominent member of the 
 royal family upon the popular side ; but now the people 
 were more fortunate, and a hope was spreading amongst 
 them that William would deliver them from their troubles. 
 If Lewis had been wise, he would have listened to the 
 voices that warned him how strong the opposition to 
 him would be if England were joined to it. He would 
 have devoted himself to the work of watching William, 
 and protecting James, his ally, from attack. Apparently 
 Lewis was blind ; he allowed his attention to be occupied 
 in another direction with a crime that he was meditating. 
 
 The capture of Strassburg had opened for him a way 
 3. Ravaging into Germany. William of Orange set sail 
 of the Pa- £qj. England on November i; but, in the pre- 
 1688. vious month, Lewis had caused a large army 
 
 to march into the Palatinate, in order to enforce a claim 
 
 made by a princess, his sister-in-law, upon those terri- 
 tories, although the case had already been decided against 
 her in the imperial courts. As this army could not 
 continue to hold the country which it had seized, it 
 received deliberate orders to ravage the whole of it, to 
 burn the towns, and to destroy the trees, crops, and 
 vines. The order was as ruthlessly obeyed as it had 
 been barbarously conceived. A thrill of horror passed 
 through Europe. 
 
 A league of opposition had been forming against 
 Lewis, known under the name of the * League of Augs- 
 burg,' which, now that William had been ^he Grand 
 successful and the EngUsh Revolution had Alliance of 
 been consummated without hindrance from A"s^'^"''S- 
 France, received the accession of England and Holland, 
 and was called The Grand Alliance. 
 
 The war that followed, the fourth act in the drama of 
 Lewis' ambition, may be divided into two parts : the one 
 —the attempts of Lewis to restore the exiled 
 James, the campaign in Ireland, of which the 
 battle of the Boyne was the centre, and the sea-fights in 
 the Channel ; the other — the Continental War. In the 
 former the English may be said to have been wholly- 
 successful ; for though the French won the battle of 
 Beachy Head, that victory had no permanent results, and 
 was soon and fully retrieved. In the Continental War the 
 results were nearly balanced, for though the French won 
 most of the pitched battles, the pecuUar genius of WilUam 
 asserted itself, the qualities which made him more 
 formidable after a defeat than others after victory. Three 
 years before the century closed, this war p^^^^^ 
 against the Grand Alliance was brought to an Ryswick. 
 end by the Peace of Ryswick. The nations ^•^' ^^'' 
 were tired of war, and welcomed peace ; but the ambi- 
 tion of Lewis made it rather a cessation of hostilities than 
 
 Third War. 
 

 24 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A,D. 1702. 
 
 m 
 
 Hi 
 
 i 
 
 \ ■■"■ ■ 
 
 ilW I 
 
 a real peace. Once more it was necessary to form the 
 Grand Alliance : once more to resist his encroachments. 
 
 Character. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE NEW DRAMATIS PERSON.E. 
 
 In accordance with the provision of the Bill of Rights, 
 confirmed by the Act of Settlement, William was suc- 
 _ ceeded on the throne by his sister-in-law. 
 
 Succession tt , 
 
 of Queen Anne, daughter of James II. and Anne Hyde, 
 ^"^" daughter of the Earl of Clarendon. 
 
 In character, and in fitness for the position of sove- 
 reign, Anne was very different from William. She had 
 not his discernment, nor his statesmanship, 
 nor his resolution. On the contrary, she was 
 without strength of character. She could not be expected 
 to establish a new policy, nor, through good report and 
 evil report, to adhere to one already established. She 
 had always been, and, after her accession she still re- 
 mained, under the influence of some stronger mind. 
 Such influence was essential to her. There is no feature 
 in her character which is so important to recollect as this, 
 for it explains a good deal of her reign, especially two of 
 its salient events — her adoption and her abandonment of 
 the Grand Alliance. 
 
 Anne, however, though no great ruler of men, possessed 
 personal qualities which would have made her highly 
 esteemed in private life, and which endeared her to her 
 subjects. Her private character was irreproachable. She 
 was kind, affectionate, and good ; a warm friend, and 
 with a humane heart. But above all she was sincerely 
 religious, like both her grandfathers, and, unlike her 
 
 The New Dramatis Personm, 
 
 25 
 
 Husband. 
 
 father, she was warmly attached to the doctrines and 
 rites of the Church of England. She often shared the 
 unreasonable fears of the High Church party, and was 
 easily shaken by the cry—* The Church is in danger ! ' 
 She was very popular with the English people, and mainly 
 for this reason, that she was peculiarly an English C[\xtQT\, 
 having, as she said in her first speech from the throne, 
 an * entirely English' heart. Coming between a Dutch 
 king, whom many Englishmen had accepted as a 
 necessity, but never loved, and a German prince, who 
 could not even speak their language, the English have 
 always looked back with affection to her reign, and 
 have enshrined her in their hearts as * Good Queen 
 Anne.' 
 
 Anne had married Prince George of Denmark, a man 
 of dull understanding and of coarse habits. * I have tried 
 him drunk, and I have tried him sober,' said 
 Charles II., of him, *and there is nothing in 
 him.' Had he been a man of more capacity, it is not 
 unhkely that he would have been placed upon the throne 
 as Wilham had been ; but with him it was impossible. 
 To this husband Queen Anne was tenderly attached. 
 Bv him she had a large family, but all of their 
 children had died in fnfancy, with the excep- 
 tion of Prince William, who, in the last reign, had been 
 created Duke of Gloucester. In him the hopes of the 
 English people were centred. King Wilham appointed 
 Marlborough as his governor, Bishop Burnet as his 
 preceptor. ' My Lord,' he who seldom paid compliments 
 had said to Marlborough, on entrusting him with his 
 office, * make him but what you are, and my nephew will 
 be all I wish to see.' But in the last year of the seven- 
 teenth century, the same year which proved fatal to the 
 wretched King Charles of Spain, the young prince died. 
 Upon his death the Act of Settlement was made law. 
 
 ChilJren. 
 
26 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 The New Dramatis Persofia, 
 
 27 
 
 41 
 
 ''<ii 
 
 by which it was decided to whom the crown should 
 pass upon the death of Anne, for when Anne came to 
 the throne, aged thirty-seven, she was childless. She 
 now appointed Prince George to the office of Lord 
 High Admiral, an office for which he was manifestly 
 unfit. 
 
 It has been said that the queen was entirely under 
 the influence of favourites. At her accession, and for 
 Lady Marl- "^any years before, during the whole of 
 borough. William's reign, and even earlier, she had 
 been under the influence of Sarah Jennings, wife of the 
 Duke of Marlborough, a woman of commanding mind, of 
 great ambition, and with a very imperious temper. Her 
 intimacy with the queen was very close. They were in 
 the habit of corresponding with each other under 
 assumed names. The Queen was Mrs. Morley ; the 
 Duchess, Mrs. Freeman ; their husbands, Prince George 
 and the Duke, were Mr. Morley and Mr. Freeman 
 respectively. The name Freeman was, perhaps, adopted 
 by the favourite as a symbol of the Mberties which its 
 bearer thought herself entitled to take with her friend. 
 It would not be too much to say that she governed the 
 queen. Some, her husband amongst the number, have 
 had the faculty of charming whilst they ruled, so that the 
 ruling was concealed : she had not. 
 
 The real hero of this reign, the successor of King 
 William in his poUcy of consistent opposition to France, 
 Marl- ^^^ J*^^^ Churchill, Duke of Marlborough. 
 
 borough. In this man were united the noblest and the 
 
 meanest qualities, and it is therefore difficult to form a 
 just estimate of him. For our purpose it will be sufficient 
 to pass very quickly over his earlier life, and to give a 
 short sketch of his character. Fortunately 
 His life. £qj. ^g^ 2Lt this point in his career, ^ that great 
 
 man is already shaking off the slough of his baser life.' 
 
 Marlborough, as a young man, was attached to the 
 household of James, Duke of York, through the dis- 
 graceful fact that his sister was the prince's mistress. At 
 the age of twenty-three he served in a campaign against 
 the Dutch under the great Turenne, whose favourable 
 notice he attracted. He rose quickly through the dif- 
 ferent military grades, and shortly after James's acces- 
 sion to the throne he commanded the English troops 
 sent against the Pretender, Monmouth, whom he de- 
 feated at the battle of Sedgemoor. James wished him 
 to become a Roman Catholic ; but from this step he 
 shrank, and when afterwards the Revolution took place, 
 this proposal was the reason that he gave for his deser- 
 tion. James, placing implicit trust in him, sent Churchill 
 forward with troops against William's invading army. 
 Instead of fighting William, he joined him. During 
 William's reign he is, at the beginning, in positions 
 of trust, but he himself does not seem certain as to 
 his future, or genuine in his sympathy with the Revolu- 
 tion ; for, though he held high office under WiUiam, he 
 yet intrigued with the exiled James, probably wishing to 
 be safe whichever side triumphed. William discovered 
 his secret correspondence with the Jacobites, and dis- 
 missed him from all his employments. Marlborough 
 boasted of having betrayed to James, and so to the 
 French, the secret of an enterprise that the English were 
 about to make against Brest ; which betrayal led to the 
 failure of the attempt, and the loss of the commander 
 with 800 men. Yet before William's death Marlborough 
 was reconciled to him, and as we have seen was en- 
 trusted by him with the important office of governor to 
 the young Duke of Gloucester. It is also said that 
 WiUiam, when contemplating the War of the Spanish 
 Succession, designed that Marlborough should command 
 the armies of the Grand Alliance. 
 
 mikim 
 
58 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 The New Dramatis Personm. 
 
 29 
 
 Character. 
 
 It will be evident, from the above sketch, that if we 
 begin with Marlborough's bad qualities, that which taints 
 all his character and all his actions is self- 
 seeking, which did not hesitate to use even 
 treachery as its instrument. Nor was his treachery only 
 a willingness to shift allegiance. The generation amongst 
 which he had been brought up, which had seen the days 
 of the Commonwealth, and of the restored Stuarts, and, 
 finally, had consigned the Stuarts again to exile, must 
 hav^e held but lightly by the duty of allegiance. But 
 Marlborough's was no common treachery, no ordinary 
 laxity of principles in high places. If others left James 
 easily, gratitude should have kept him, at least, by his 
 side. The imparting of information of a military ex- 
 pedition to the rulers of a country with which his own 
 was at war can be excused by no blaze of glory ; nor can 
 we palliate the sending of money to assist a rival to his 
 sovereign's throne. The self-interest, which seems to have 
 been the leading motive of conduct both in Marlborough 
 and in his wife, sometimes assumed the baser shape of 
 an inordinate love of money. A nobleman, who was 
 once mobbed by mistake for Marlborough in the time of 
 his unpopularity, indulged in this sarcasm at his expense 
 — ' I will easily convince you that I am not my Lord 
 Marlborough. In the first place, I have only two guineas 
 about me, and, in the second place, they are very much at 
 your service.' Marlborough even grudged a pension to a 
 servant who had saved his life. 
 
 Yet let no one imagine that Marlborough was alto- 
 gether a bad man. His great vices tainted his public 
 and his private life ; but he had quahties 
 which went far to redeem these, and which 
 enabled him to render almost priceless services to his 
 country and to Europe. He was possessed of consummate 
 military genius, and courage dauntless yet not rash. He 
 
 His virtues. 
 
 was never defeated in any battle. He was always ready 
 to expose himself to danger provided that it was neces- 
 sary. He had, also, a virtue more useful than courage to 
 soldier or to statesman— calm patience ; he showed no 
 excitement in the heat of battle ; he was calm and serene 
 in danger as in -a drawing-room. Closely allied with this 
 calmness was a suavity of mind and of manners, which 
 fascinated the most critical judge. Marlborough was a 
 singularly handsome man, gifted with a beautiful face and 
 a most perfect figure. It has been said that his calmness 
 proceeded, to a great extent, from a want of heart ; but 
 his affection for his wife was so remarkable that he has 
 often been taunted with being too much under her in- 
 fluence. If she wrote angrily to him, no success in war 
 could make him happy until she had relented. More- 
 over, as a general, Marlborough was remarkable for his 
 humanity ; before the battle he would point out to the 
 surgeons their stations, and would take measures to 
 ensure the proper treatment of the wounded. No general 
 was so courteous and considerate to his prisoners. 
 
 Many a character has been written of Marlborough, 
 varying from the strongest praise to the severest blame. 
 It would seem the true course not to temper the praise 
 with the blame, and produce a verdict that should be 
 neither hot nor cold, but to adopt and combine the strong 
 features from each account, and to leave it to the moral 
 philosopher to decide how it came to pass, as it assuredly 
 did, that one man could combine the blackest treachery 
 and the greediest avarice with the courage, the calmness, 
 and the sweetness of Marlborough. 
 
 Amongst English statesmen Marlborough had most 
 sympathy with Sydney, Lord Godolphin ; and he insisted 
 that Godolphin should be appointed to the Lord Go- 
 office of Lord High Treasurer. This office is dolphin, 
 now in abeyance, or, rather, as the expression runs, it is 
 
 II 
 
i 
 
 30 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 The New Dramatis Personm, 
 
 31 
 
 in commission, that is to say, instead of one minister 
 there are five, who are called the Lords of the Treasury, 
 of whom the Prime Minister is one, and the Chancellor 
 of the Exchequer another. From this time forward 
 Marlborough and Godolphin were firm allies. Lord 
 Godolphin, however, was not a statesman of a high order, 
 but one that would be best described as a shrewd man of 
 business. He was able to give Marlborough very useful 
 support, for an army depends on its supplies, and money 
 is the sinews of war. But in private life Godolphin was 
 not superior to the country squires of his time. He had 
 no taste for literature or art, and his favourite pursuits 
 were racing and cock-fighting. 
 
 In the work which now lay before Marlborough he 
 was very materially assisted by two men. Prince Eugene 
 Prince ^^^ Hcinsius. Prince Eugene was a younger 
 
 Eugene. gon of the House of Savoy. He was bom 
 
 in France, and educated for the priesthood ; but he 
 showed even in his studies a taste for the life of a soldier. 
 Instead of theological works he was fond of reading 
 Plutarch's Lives. He was a youth of slender figure, and 
 King Lewis on that account refused him the commission 
 for which he asked, and spoke contemptuously of the 
 little abbe. This insult Eugene never forgot. He 
 immediately left France, and entered the service of the 
 emperor. He was thus an Italian, bom in France, and 
 living in Germany. In his signature he united the lan- 
 guages of the three countries, * Eugenio von Savoye.' 
 
 The empire had for many years been engaged in 
 constant wars with the Turks. In these wars Eugene so 
 distinguished himself that he came to be regarded as the 
 first general of the empire. Between him and Marl- 
 borough a very warm friendship sprang up, which never 
 cooled. There was no jealousy between them, but, 
 whether they were working together in the same cam- 
 
 paign, or at a distance at the head of separate armies, 
 they were always one-minded in their aims and policy. 
 Yet Eugene was very different from Marlborough. He 
 had not the same calmness. His courage was mixed 
 with daring. He was like a Fury in the day of battle, 
 and as prodigal of the lives of his soldiers as he was 
 careless of his own. 
 
 The third in this triumvirate, which broke the power 
 of Lewis and delivered Europe, was not a general, but a 
 statesman. As such, his work is in the ,^ . . 
 
 , , , - -I • 1 Heinsius. 
 
 background, and has not been much noticed 
 in histories. Yet, though not so visible, the work which he 
 did in holding the members of the Grand Alliance toge- 
 ther, in keeping Holland faithful to the cause, and in 
 helping Marlborough with advice, was as true and valu- 
 able as the more brilliant exploits of others. Anthony 
 Heinsius was a Dutch statesman. Shortly after William 
 of Orange had carried the English Revolution to a 
 successful issue, he became Grand Pensionary, a title 
 which we may translate into our own political language 
 by calling him Prime Minister of Holland. On entering 
 public life he had preferred for his country a close aUiance 
 with France, and had been hostile to the princes of the 
 House of Orange. But a visit to Versailles opened his 
 eyes to the fact that the Dutch could have no lasting 
 friendship with the French, who despised their govern- 
 ment, and persecuted their religion. He changed sides, 
 joined himself closely to William, and became one of his 
 warmest friends and most trusted advisers. And Wil- 
 liam felt that there was no man whom he would leave 
 behind him so competent and so willing to carry out his 
 poUcy as Heinsius. 
 
3 2 The Age of A tme, a. d. 1 701 . 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE GRAND ALLIANCE. 
 
 The Grand Alliance being duly formed, it will be well 
 to consider its component parts. 
 
 At its head we must place the emperor, rather on 
 account of the ancient dignity of the empire than because 
 r^^^ of its actual power. The office was still 
 
 Emperor. nominally elective. At each vacancy the Elec- 
 tors met at Frankfort-on-Maine, and all the forms of an 
 election were gone through. Sometimes there was a show 
 of opposition, but the empire had now become practi- 
 cally hereditary in the House of Hapsburg. For nearly 
 three centuries no emperor had been elected who did 
 not belong to that family. Though the empire gave 
 dignity to the family, it did not give them power. What- 
 ever they had of power came to them from their proper 
 hereditary dominions, which were very heterogeneous. 
 They were kings, and nominally elective, in Bohemia 
 and in Hungary ; archdukes in Austria and in the Tyrol. 
 The family was by no means incapable, but was selfish, 
 and unable to rise to the conception of a union of Ger- 
 many. Earlier, the princes of this House had been 
 bigoted Roman Catholics, who, indeed, had brought 
 about the Thirty Years' War by this very bigotry. But 
 now the danger of encroachment on the part of France 
 was great, and they were ready to join and to take 
 advantage of the Alliance, although its members were 
 chiefly Protestant. Lewis XIV. was declared ' Heri- 
 ditary Foe of the Holy Empire.' Leopold I. was the 
 emperor at the outbreak of the war, having been 
 emperor for nearly fifty years. Shortly after the com- 
 mencement, in the year after Blenheim, he died, and was 
 
 A.D. 1 701. 
 
 T/te Grand Alliance, 
 
 o ^ 
 
 succeeded by his eldest son, Joseph, who had won some 
 fame as a soldier, and who was much beloved in his own 
 dominions, being generous and humane. Leopold's 
 second son, Charles, was the candidate whom the aUies 
 wished to place upon the throne of Spain. He was by 
 no means equal to his brother in merit. 
 
 As the form of election to the Empire was still kept 
 up, we should notice who were the Electors. By the 
 twelfth century the number had been fixed at -j^^ 
 seven, three of whom were ecclesiastics — the Electors. 
 Archbishops of Mayence, Treves, and Cologne ; and four 
 lay princes — the Electors of Saxony, Brandenburg, Bo- 
 hemia, and the Palatinate. In the seventeenth century 
 an eighth Elector was added. Frederick, the Elector 
 Palatine, son-in-law of James I. of England, having given 
 his consent to be elected — as a Protestant— to the king- 
 dom of Bohemia, was defeated by the Austrian prince, 
 who was also Emperor, and was deprived not only of 
 Bohemia, but also of the Palatinate, and, therewith, of his 
 vote, which was given to the Catholic Duke of Bavaria. 
 The Thirty Years' War followed ; and at the peace of 
 Westphalia, which ended that war, it was contended that 
 the vote could not thus be taken from the Elector Pala- 
 tine^. At length, to satisfy both parties, a vote was given 
 to each. In 1692 the Emperor Leopold on his own 
 responsibiHty gave a ninth vote to the Duke of Hanover, 
 whose descendant now sits upon the throne of England, 
 though this vote was not recognised by the Diet of the 
 Empire for fourteen years, that is, after the outbreak of 
 this war. The recognition was claimed by Hanover as 
 its price for continuance in the war. 
 
 Of the nine Electors two, Cologne and How they 
 Bavaria, were upon the side of France. The themselves, 
 other two ecclesiastics, Mayence and Treves, 
 were neutral Bohemia formed part of the Emperor's 
 
 M,if, D 
 
34 
 
 The Age of Anne^ 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 A.D. 1703. 
 
 The Grand Alliance. 
 
 35 
 
 dominions. The Elector of Saxony had recently been 
 elected King of Poland, and was very busy at the eastern 
 end of Gennany ; he could not spare energies for fighting 
 against France. Brandenburg, the Palatinate, and Han- 
 over were members of the Grand Alliance. When we 
 remember what the Palatinate had lately suffered, we 
 cannot wonder that it should join against France. 
 
 Frederick, the Elector of Brandenburg, named as his 
 price for joining the alliance that his electorate should 
 Kin of ^^ "^^^^ ^^^^ ^ kingdom. He was the last 
 
 Prussia. of the twelve Hohenzollern Electors of Bran- 
 
 denburg, and had been wishing for some time to be 
 king, especially since his neighbour, the Elector of 
 Saxony, had become King of Poland, and another neigh- 
 bour, the Duke of Hanover, had been made Elector, with 
 the prospect of his family inheriting the English Crown. 
 He took his regal title from another part of his do- 
 minions, and, when the Emperor Leopold yielded, his 
 Ministry, it is said, having been richly bribed, Frederick 
 was crowned King of Prussia (1701). It may be well to 
 remember that he was the grandfather of Frederick the 
 Great, and that this was the beginning of the kingdom 
 (though its earlier history before it was a kingdom is well 
 worth study) which in our own day has extended and 
 prospered, until its monarch has become the new Emperor 
 of Germany. 
 
 Some other minor princes of Germany joined in the 
 league, such as Lewis, Prince of Baden, and, for at 
 least part of the war, Denmark also con- 
 Other allies, ^j-jijuted troops. But, after all allowance has 
 been made, England and Holland must be considered 
 the central powers of the alliance. 
 
 The names Holland and Dutch are instances of two 
 different laws that affect names — extension and contrac- 
 tion. The word ' Dutch ' in England is only applied to the 
 
 people and language of Holland, but it is the same as the 
 name by which the Germans, of whom the natives of 
 Holland are a branch, call themselves and their speech. 
 The name * Holland,' properly applied to two out of the 
 Seven United Provinces, North and South Holland, has 
 been extended to the whole seven. Holland, when the 
 war broke out, had been a nation for rather more than 
 120 years. These seven provinces, lying round and to the 
 north of the mouth of the Rhine, had, together with the 
 remaining provinces of the Netherlands, rebelled against 
 the tyranny and persecution of Spain ; and under the lead 
 of William the Silent, Prince of Orange, great-grand- 
 father of William IIL of England, the northern seven 
 had after vigorous and heroic resistance gained their 
 independence. They banded themselves together in the 
 League of Utrecht (1579) into the Federal Common- 
 wealth of the Seven United Provinces. From the time 
 of their freedom they made great progress. Daring 
 mariners, eager and skilful traders, active colonists, in 
 the course of a century they raised their small State 
 to a high rank in Europe. It was for its size far the 
 wealthiest, far the most populous, and far the most 
 important 
 
 After one year of the war, in 1703, the Grand Alliance 
 was joined by two other powers, which at first had ranked 
 themselves on the side of the French prince,— Savoy and 
 Portugal. 
 
 Victor Amadeus II., Duke of Savoy, is one of the 
 most romantic characters of the period. Though his 
 territory was small, the part that he played 
 in history was by no means insignificant. ^^^°^' 
 He had more than ordinary capacity, both as general and 
 administrator. The virtues of chivalry, bravery, and 
 generosity distinguished him, and made him warmly 
 loved by his subjects. When a French emissary was 
 
36 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1703. 
 
 A.D. 1703. 
 
 Tlie Grand Alliance, 
 
 Z7 
 
 taunting him with the destruction of his small army, he 
 answered with spirit :— * I will stamp with my foot upon the 
 ground, and soldiers will spring forth.' His little land 
 was overshadowed by its more powerful neighbour, and 
 had for at least half a century before his accession been 
 at the beck of the French king. Lewis sent orders to 
 the duke not to harbour Protestants who had fled from 
 France when the Edict of Nantes was revoked, and to 
 His part in persecute those who were in his dominion. 
 the war be- ^^^ ^^^ \^\^ predeccssor done it in Crom- 
 wick. weirs time, and stirred Milton's heart with 
 
 the tales of atrocity that were told ? Victor Amadeus was 
 but half-hearted in the execution of Lewis's cruel will, 
 and a French marshal was sent to demand his capital. 
 This drove him into open resistance, and he joined the 
 League of Augsburg (1686), which had been recently set 
 on foot. The armies sent against him were active and 
 powerful, and he lost two battles. But great efforts were 
 made to detach him from the common cause, and at 
 length he made a separate peace with France, which was 
 as honourable to him as if he had been victorious. His 
 territory was to be restored ; the Duke of Burgundy, the 
 eldest son of the dauphin, was to marry his eldest 
 daughter ; he was to be treated hke a king. On these 
 terms he changed sides. It was said that he was 
 generalissimo for the Emperor and for King Lewis 
 within one month. But his separate peace was the first 
 of a series, and the Treaty of Ryswick (1697) soon ended 
 
 the war. 
 
 When the second Grand Alliance was formed and 
 the war of the Spanish Succession began, he was at first 
 In the on the side of the French, but after a very 
 
 Spanish ghort time he made a change, as sudden as that 
 
 Succession ^j^j^j^ j^^ ^idid made in the last war, but in 
 the exactly opposite direction. In order to secure his 
 
 allegiance, not only had the Duke of Burgundy married 
 his eldest daughter, in accordance with the treaty, but 
 his brother Philip, Duke of Anjou, and now, according to 
 the will of the late king, King of Spain, married his 
 second daughter. The insolence, however, of a French 
 marshal, who apparently despised a Prince of Savoy, 
 and the strictness of Spanish etiquette, which would not 
 allow him to sit by the side of his son-in-law, so vexed 
 Jiim, that he meditated deserting his cause. All hesita- 
 tion was removed by an arrogant letter which he received 
 from Lewis XIV. The following was their correspond- 
 ence : — 
 
 (The King to the Duke.) 
 
 * Monsieur, — Since religion, honour, and your own 
 signature, are of no account between us, I send my 
 cousin, the Due de Vendome, to explain my will to you. 
 He will give you twenty-four hours to decide.' 
 
 (Answer. — The Duke to the King.) 
 
 * Sire, — Threats do not frighten me. I shall take the 
 measures that may suit me best, relative to the unworthy 
 proceedings that have been adopted towards my troops. 
 I have nothing further to explain, and I decline listening 
 to any proposition whatever.' 
 
 Lewis XIV. sent orders that the Savoyard troops 
 should be disarmed. Victor Amadeus thereupon changed 
 sides, and was for the remainder of the war bitterly 
 opposed to France. At first he met with many disasters ; 
 but his high courage sustained him through them all, 
 and when Eugene brought an imperial army into Italy, 
 the tide of war turned, and the success of the allies in 
 that portion of the borders of France was by no means 
 the least serious of the blows under which King Lewis 
 staggered. 
 
38 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1703. 
 
 A.D. 1703- 
 
 The Grand Alliance. 
 
 39 
 
 This sketch, which is continued in the main body of 
 the history, may be found of interest, placed side by side 
 with the account of the kingdom of Prussia. As that is 
 the beginning of the modern German Empire, so the 
 descendant of Victor Amadeus is now King of United 
 Italy. The Duchy of Savoy may be said to be the germ 
 of modern Italy, though, strange to say, it now lies with- 
 out the borders of that kingdom. 
 
 Portugal joined the Grand Alliance in the same year 
 as Savoy. During the Middle Ages Portugal had been a 
 small independent kingdom, which during 
 Portugal. ^^ X-^xx^T part of that time had devoted itself 
 to the honourable work of discovery and colonisation. 
 On a vacancy of the throne occurring by exhaustion of the 
 previous dynasty, Phihp II. of Spain became a candi- 
 date ; but, being doubtful of success, he determined not 
 to wait for an election, but to seize the crown by force 
 of arms. For sixty years Portugal remained subject to 
 Spain ; and for rather more than sixty years since it had 
 been free. In this war the situation of Portugal gave it 
 an importance which its size could not claim. The king 
 hesitated at first on which side to declare, thinking that 
 France would win, but recognising, also, that the fleets of 
 England and Holland were strong, and that his coasts 
 lay exposed to them. To secure Portugal, the Archduke 
 Charles promised by a secret treaty to cede certain 
 Spanish cities, and the territory called Rio de la Plata 
 in South America. When this was afterwards divulged 
 it created a strong feeling against Charles in Spain. A 
 treaty, called the Methuen Treaty, after Paul 
 Trelty^" Methuen, the English ambassador at Lisbon, 
 gained over Portugal to the side of the allies. One of 
 the conditions of this treaty was that the wmes of 
 Portugal should be admitted into England at a much 
 lower "duty than the French wines. Such was the price 
 
 of the accession of Portugal— a price which the English 
 continued to pay for no less than 1 3 1 years. The alliance 
 between England and Portugal was permanent. 
 
 Against this league what chance had the French? The 
 confederacy was very numerous, but no reliance can be 
 placed on the members of a confederacy that they will 
 remain of one mind. France was a monarchy, and a 
 despotic monarchy. It suffered from no divided counsels, 
 but one will ruled over all. Moreover, it had a large and 
 well-disciplined standing army ; and was probably able 
 to bring at once into the field a larger force than the 
 whole confederacy. And, lastly, the French soldiers had 
 hitherto been victorious on every field ; they believed 
 themselves and others held them to be almost invincible. 
 An unprejudiced spectator at the outset would have said 
 that France with Spain on her side would win in this 
 contest. Such an one could not take into account the 
 as yet unproved genius of Mariborough, or the lavish 
 expenditure of money on the part of England and of 
 
 Holland. . 
 
 In the same year that Savoy left her side France 
 gained another ally, the Elector of Bavaria. He had 
 been Governor-General of the Netheriands during the 
 reign of his wife's uncle, Charles II. of Spain. It was a 
 post with an enormous salary, and Brussels, the seat of the 
 government, was a pleasant place of residence, pleasanter 
 than his own capital, Munich. To secure his alliance, a 
 promise was made by Lewis that the Elector should be 
 continued in this post, and so within a year of the outbreak 
 he declared himself on the side of France. His brother, 
 the Elector of Cologne, was a creature of King Lewis, and 
 of course upon his side, but his assistance was of no 
 
 great value. 11-1, 
 
 At the beginning of the war Philip, the French 
 
 candidate, was aged seventeen, Charles, the Austnan 
 
 li 
 
 ■4" 
 
 J; 
 
40 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702, 
 
 archduke, fifteen. They were curiously alike in character. 
 Both were dreamy and sleepy in disposition, but capable 
 of obstinate opposition when once aroused, and after- 
 wards became mere puppets in the hands of their wives. 
 Lord Peterborough, an English general, somewhat free 
 of tongue, asked if it was worth while that great nations 
 should fight for such * a pair of louts.' 
 
 iii' 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 OPENING OF THE WAR. 
 
 Section I. —Marlborough in Flanders, 
 
 Immediately upon the declaration of war Marlborough 
 was appointed Commander-in-chief of the British forces. 
 Marl- Fortunately the Dutch also were easily 
 
 borough persuaded by Heinsius to place their troops 
 
 in-Sf. under the same command. Indeed, Marl- 
 
 borough became almost at once exceedingly popular 
 with the Dutch people, as well as honoured and trusted 
 by the Dutch statesmen. His exquisite manners ac- 
 count for the popularity ; William's opinion of him for 
 the trust. The standing danger of a confederacy is 
 division of counsels ; and it was, therefore, well for the 
 common cause that the troops of both the Dutch and 
 the English— the most important of the allies in that 
 quarter— should be under one general. The fact that 
 there were more commanders than one ruined the 
 campaigns elsewhere— on the Rhine and in Spain. But 
 it was unfortunate that the confidence of the Dutch did 
 not go so far as the abolition of their custom of sending 
 with the general field-deputies, civilian members of the 
 Government, without whose consent no important action 
 
 A.D. 1702. 
 
 Opening of the War, 
 
 
 should be undertaken. This was no special device to 
 annoy Marlborough, but in his early campaigns it had the 
 effect of hindering him and tying his hands. 
 
 It must be remembered that, immediately on his 
 grandson's accepting the Spanish crown, Lewis had 
 seized all the strong towns in the Spanish y^^^-^_ 
 Netherlands, and occupied them with French ^«r«^"K^;^.^^, 
 troops. Many of these were fortresses of the campaign, 
 first rank, and their fortifications had been ^'^'^• 
 repaired by Vauban. Until Marlborough and the allies 
 could wrest these from him, there could be no security for 
 Holland from a French invasion. Before Marlborough 
 arrived to take the command of the united army, the town 
 of Kaiserswerth upon the Rhine, which was under the 
 Elector of Cologne, one of France's few allies, had been 
 taken. Marlborough's object was, starting from this town, 
 to clear as much as he could of the Netherlands. He laid 
 siege to, and captured several towns. At ^^^^^ 
 Venloo, the first of them, much gallantry 
 was displayed in an attack upon a fort. One young 
 Enghsh nobleman, who had risen from a sick bed, offered 
 every farthing he had to the man who would lift him 
 over the palisades. There was no resisting such a spirit. 
 The town itself soon capitulated, its surrender being 
 hastened by an accident. The besiegers received orders 
 to fire a salute in honour of a victory which the allies 
 had won upon the Rhine. The defenders thought it was 
 the commencement of a general attack, and they yielded 
 at once. Liege was the seat of an independent prince- 
 bishop, but it did not on that account escape its share of 
 war. The French had placed a garrison in it, and the 
 allies took it by storm. 
 
 The result of this first campaign of Marl- ^^^^ 
 borough was that he cleared from French 
 occupation a wedge, with Liege as its apex, the Rhine as 
 
 M 
 
 
I 
 
 III' 
 
 42 The Age of A nne. a. d. i 702-3. 
 
 its base, and the Meuse as one of its sides, and that he 
 had cut the French off from the lower valley of the Rhine, 
 and thereby protected the Dutch frontier at one of its 
 most vulnerable parts. 
 
 At the conclusion of this campaign Marlborough was 
 very near being taken prisoner. The boat in which he 
 was proceeding down the Meuse was seized 
 borough in by some Frenchmen, and he himself was 
 danger. ^^^j saved by the quick wit of his servant, 
 
 who put into his hand an old passport belonging to his 
 brother. The news of his supposed capture spread the 
 greatest consternation through Holland, where his services 
 were beginning to be appreciated. And great was the 
 joy when it was discovered that the capture had not 
 
 been effected. 
 
 In honour of his ser\'ices Marlborough was made a 
 duke, and a solemn Te Deum was played in St. Paul's 
 Cathedral, the queen attending in all state. It was the first 
 real check for many years that the French had received. 
 
 The campaign of the second year was by no means so 
 successful. The French were concentrating their strength 
 
 Second ^^ *^^^*" ^^^^^^ ^" ^^^^'^ parts; but Marl- 
 
 carap"aign. borough was unablc to use his opportunity 
 because he was hampered by the field deputies, and by 
 Dutch colleagues, nominally his subordinates. One of 
 these generals distinguished himself by running away 
 from the enemy, and himself bringing news that his own 
 troops were cut to pieces, when the truth was that, 
 relieved of his presence, they had fought bravely, even if 
 they had not actually won a victory. Marlborough's own 
 wish was to make a bold attack on Antwerp, but by these 
 thwartings he was prevented from carrying out his design. 
 The results of his campaign, therefore, were 
 ^^*"^'- meagre ; but he managed to widen the base 
 
 of his triangular'' wedge by the capture of Bonn on the 
 
 A.D. 1702. 
 
 Opening of the War, 
 
 43 
 
 Rhine and to drive it a little further home by the 
 capture of the fortress of Huy, which is higher up the 
 Meuse Valley than Liege, being about half-way to 
 
 Namur 
 
 At the close of that year the Archduke Charles, on 
 his way to Spain, paid a visit to the Low Countries, and 
 afterwards to England. He presented Marl- Th^^AiJ^.^^^ 
 borough with his portrait and with a swora ^^^ ^^^1- 
 set in diamonds. Thus early in the war must borough. 
 Charles have recognised that almost his only hope ol 
 success lay in Marlborough's generalship. 
 
 Section 11. —Campaigns in Germany and elsewhere. 
 
 Besides Marlborough's first campaign in the Low 
 Countries, there was also fighting elsewhere in the hrst 
 year of the war. On the Upper Rhine Prince ^^^ 
 Lewis of Baden succeeded in taking the 
 town of Landau, which was held by the French. It was 
 in honour of this that the salute was being fired which 
 led to the capture of Venloo. Prince Lewis was a 
 soldier of the old school, personally brave, but ver>- 
 difficult to set in motion, very crotchety about the rules 
 of tactics, and not apt to imbibe new ideas about them. 
 He was shortly after this beaten by a French marshal 
 
 There was fighting also in Italy, where the allied 
 troops were commanded by Prince Eugene. Mantua 
 and Milan had both declared for Philip of ^^^^ ^^^ 
 Anjou, and it was necessary for Eugene to 
 offer battle, in order to secure the imperial interests in 
 North Italy. He won a brilliant victory at Cremona, in 
 which the French general was taken prisoner. By this 
 he protected the Empire for a time from any invasion by 
 way of the Italian passes into Tyrol 
 
 fif 
 
44 The Age of Anne. a. d. 1703. 
 
 In the second year of the war Lewis and his war 
 ministers seemed to have resolved to make a vigorous 
 Attack on ^"^^^ "P^" *^ Empire. The Empire was 
 the EmpL. the weakest of the aUies, because the terri- 
 tories of the Empire lay most exposed to attack. An 
 army was sent to co-operate with the Elector of Bavaria, 
 who had now declared in favour of France. It had no 
 difficulty in escaping from Lewis of Baden, and then, 
 by marching through the Black Forest, it effected a junc- 
 tion with the Elector of Bavaria. A campaign in Tyrol 
 ensued, in which the capital Innsbruck, and the strong 
 fortress of Kufstein, commanding the Brenner Pass, were 
 captured by the Bavarians. But the peasantry rose 
 acrainst the invaders, and they were forced to retire. 
 Defeats of A battle was fought at Hochstadt, close by 
 allies at ^j^g figld where Marlborough defeated the 
 
 fn^Landau. French next year, but the imperialists were 
 routed. Another French army retook Landau, so that 
 the general result of the campaign in Germany was very 
 
 favourable to the French. ,.,,., , 
 
 Meanwhile in another quarter the English had been 
 engaged in a fight which did not add lustre to their honour. 
 Admiral Benbow was a brave old sailor, popular with his 
 men but hated by his officers, whom he kept to their work. 
 He was acting against a French squadron in the West 
 Indies, and making a most gallant fight, which he would 
 have won if he had not been deserted by some of his 
 captains. He was himself struck by several shots and 
 mortally wounded, but he survived long enough to bring 
 the traitors to court-martial. Two of them were shot for 
 cowardice and one dismissed from the service. But it 
 was believed that the reason for their conduct was as 
 much hatred of their admiral as fear of the enemy's 
 cannon balls. 
 
 A.D. 1702. 
 
 Opening of tlie War, 
 Section III.— Spain. 
 
 4S 
 
 It was to be expected that, in a war which was about 
 Spain, an expedition would be made against Spain itself. 
 King William had planned an expedition ^^ 
 against Cadiz, once the scene of a great 
 Eno-lish triumph, when Essex * singed the king of Spain s 
 bea'rd ' and it was determined now to carry out this plan. 
 Cadiz was called the golden gate of the Indies, because 
 all the wealth of the mines in Spanish America entered 
 Europe there. The Spaniards were very weak : they 
 were without money and without troops. If the Enghsh 
 had made a vigorous and well-directed effort, they would 
 probably have taken Cadiz. The command of the force 
 was -iven to the Duke of Ormond, who had in Wilham^s 
 battles shown great bravery, but who had not the faculty 
 of commanding. The navy was entrusted to a gallant 
 sailor Sir George Rooke. A contingent of Dutch troops 
 was employed under a Dutch general. But Ormond 
 was wholly unable to preserve discipline, and national 
 jealousy led to disturbances between the English and the 
 Dutch The orders were not very clear, and Rooke 
 made merry over them. They were to conciliate the 
 Spaniards to the cause of Charles by making an attack on 
 their towns. The Spaniards armed themselves under a 
 brave old nobleman, the Marquis of Villadarias, who, 
 having but few troops wherewith to defend Cadiz, re- 
 sorted to the expedient of lighting watch-fires sufficient 
 for a large force, and so deceived the allies. Two small 
 towns were taken, but the men could not be restrained 
 from plundering them, shamelessly firing even the 
 churches in their Protestant fury. Thus, instead of con- 
 ciliating, they roused the fierce hostility of the Spaniards. 
 After a 'month a council of war decided that the enter- 
 prise should be abandoned. 
 
46 
 
 Tin Age of Anne. a. d. 1702- 
 
 Fortunately for the credit of England, on the voyage 
 home a chance was offered for the fleet to distinguish 
 itself. News was brought that the yearly 
 SreL^ure fleet of Spanish galleons laden with treasure 
 ships. 1702. i^ad put into Vigo Bay. The law of Spanish 
 trade was that these galleons could unload only at Cadiz. 
 As the Enghsh fleet was in front of Cadiz, they had taken 
 refuge at Vigo. If they could have received permission 
 to unload, all the treasure might have been saved for 
 Spain The jealous ofticials at Cadiz, however, refused 
 this permission, and although the higher authorities at 
 Madrid granted it, it arrived only after a delay that 
 proved fatal. The Spaniards at Vigo placed a boom or 
 barrier of masts and spars across the mouth of the har- 
 bour, where they also manned two small forts. 
 
 The hope of plunder and the desire to recover the 
 reputation which they had lost before Cadiz stimulated 
 the allies to great efforts at Vigo. Whilst the English 
 soldiers under Ormond scaled and took the forts, a 
 gallant sea-fight ensued, in which victory fell to the 
 English. The ships charged, and broke the boom. It 
 is uncertain what became of the greater part of the 
 treasure : enough fell into the hands of the assailants to 
 reward them for their enterprise. There are some who 
 think that the remainder still lies at the bottom of Vigo 
 harbour ; but others argue that the interval which elapsed 
 between the appearance of the allies and their attack 
 was sufficient to enable much of it to be landed and 
 removed into the interior. 
 
 The Enghsh Government did not send any expedition 
 into Spain in the next year ; but tried first by means of 
 Earl of diplomacy to attach the King of Portugal to 
 
 Gaiway in ^^ cause of the Grand Alliance and of the 
 fyC^^^' Archduke Charles. When they had at length 
 succeeded in this, it was determined to attack Spain at 
 
 A.D. 1704- 
 
 Opening of tlie War. 
 
 47 
 
 the same time from the east and from the west. The 
 army from the west consisted of Portuguese levies and 
 Enghsh troops : it did not do much, until the command 
 was given to the Earl of Gaiway, a French Protestant, 
 who, escaping from the intolerance of France, had been 
 honoured with a commission in the Enghsh army by 
 King William, and later with an Irish peerage. He had 
 already earned a reputation for bravery at the Battle of 
 the Boyne, and possessed a certain amount of military 
 skill, but he lacked the power of adapting his skill to new 
 circumstances. Strange to say, whilst the allied army 
 was commanded by a Frenchman, the army that was 
 opposed to it was commanded by an Englishman. For 
 against Portugal Lewis had sent a large army into Spam 
 to help to fight the battles of his grandson. This force 
 he placed under the Uuke of Berwick, the illegitimate 
 son of James II. and Arabella Churchill, Marlborough's 
 sister— a cold, stern man and an excellent general. 
 
 Meanwhile Sir George Rooke had been making an 
 attempt upon the opposite coast of Spain. He had 
 prepared to make an attack on Barcelona, an important 
 commercial city, and one that was believed to have much 
 sympathy with the archduke. But the troops which he 
 had on board were insufficient, and the malcontents in 
 the city, who had expected a large force and the presence 
 of the archduke himself, were disappointed. Rooke, 
 therefore, was obliged to retire. As the force was re- 
 turning, a very important place fell almost by accident 
 into the hands of the English. Gibraltar was not then 
 the strong place that the art of fortification gapmreof 
 has made it since ; but it was always very ^^^l^* 
 strong by nature ; so strong, that the Span- a.d. 1704. 
 iards left but a small garrison there, and that garrison 
 was careless in its watching. Rooke determined to make 
 an attempt on Gibraltar, and landed some troops on the 
 
48 
 
 The Age of A nne. a. d. i 704; 
 
 narrow strip of land by which the Rock of Gibraltar M 
 connected, with the mainland. The day after the bom^ 
 bardment commenced was a Saint's Day, and the sen- 
 tinels went to hear mass in a neighbouring chapel. 
 Whilst they were thus employed, some English sailors 
 clambered by a path, which was almost inaccessible, on 
 to the top of the rock, and there hoisted the British flag. 
 In spite of vigorous efforts on the part of enemies to haul 
 it down, that flag has waved over the Rock of Gibraltar 
 from that day (3rd August, 1704) to this. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 RISING IN THE CEVENNES. 
 
 Two regions of France seem to have been especially open 
 to the influence of Protestant or Huguenot opinions. 
 
 One is the lower valley of the Loire, where 
 ofTh? Hu!" the doctrines of the Huguenots were accepted 
 guenots. i^y ^^ artisans of the great industrial towns, 
 
 of which Nantes maybe taken as representative.^ This 
 town, as is well known, gave its name to the Edict of 
 Toleration, by which under certain conditions freedom of 
 
 worship had been permitted to the Hugue- 
 Loire valley. ^^^^^ ^j^^ distoct must also be made to 
 include the country to the south of the Loire, as far as La 
 Rochelle, the favourite stronghold of the Huguenots. 
 Rhone ^^^ °^^^^ P^^^ °^ France is the lower valley 
 
 valley^ of the Rhone, beginning with Lyons (which 
 
 in the persecution lost 9,000 of its silk weavers), and the 
 hills which close that valley in. Upon the east side is 
 Dauphiny, the home of the Vaudois ; on the western is 
 the province of Languedoc, in which during the twelfth 
 
 CH. VI. 
 
 Rising in the Cevennes, 
 
 49 
 
 and earlier part of the thirteenth century the sect of the 
 Albigenses was strong. In several points the Albigenses 
 resemble the later Protestants— in their opposition to 
 the Pope, in their indignation against the corruptions of 
 the Church, and in their vehement zeal for a purer form 
 of faith based upon the Scriptures. The Albigenses were 
 put down after a cruel persecution, which is sometimes 
 dignified with the title of the Albigensian Crusade. 
 But it would seem as if memories of this earlier struggle, 
 the seed of religion, which is found in the blood of 
 martyrs, remained in the country where they had laid 
 down their lives. When persecution broke out in the 
 middle of the reign of Lewis XIV., the Huguenots of 
 Northern and Middle France saved themselves by flight 
 to happier countries, or by an acceptance of the dominant 
 faith. The regions where resistance was found were the 
 natural homes of liberty, the mountains of the south, first, 
 among the Vaudois, and, secondly, in the Cevennes. 
 
 Cevennes is the name of the range of mountains that 
 runs nearly parallel to the Rhone, at some little distance 
 from its right bank. At the southern end the 
 range separates from the direction of the 
 river, trending towards the Pyrenees, leaving a marshy 
 plain between the mountains and the Mediterranean, in 
 the midst of which is situated the town of Nisme. The 
 hills are of volcanic origin, though the volcanoes are 
 extinct. They are rough and precipitous, with many 
 caves and fissures, yet in many places thickly covered 
 with forest trees. It is just the country in which a few 
 peasants, well acquainted with footpaths and by-ways, 
 might keep at bay a regular army, even though its soldiers 
 were many times more numerous than they. 
 
 Mixed with the pure religion of this simple mountain 
 folk there was certainly much fanaticism. As the persecu- 
 tion increased in intensity, many amongst them professed 
 M. H. E 
 
The Age of Anne. a.d. 1702. 
 
 to be inspired ; and shortly after the opening of the new 
 century the inspirations took the form of exhortations to 
 resist It was remarked that the spirit of prophecy fell 
 chiefly upon the young, and that in the insu'rection 
 which followed the leaders were young. In July, 1702, 
 the very year in which the War of the Succession com- 
 menced, and shortly after that war had been proclaimed, 
 fifty of the persecuted, excited to resistance by the pro- 
 phets, met in a forest, under three tall beech trees. 
 There they determined to attack their persecutors. The 
 , ^ . insurgents became known as the Camisards, 
 Sdf '""■ or ' wearers of the white frock : ' but it is 
 not certain whether this was the ordinary =">°^k-f™^^ 
 of the country peasants, or a special dress chosen 
 that the wearers might be yisible to each other on a 
 dark night. The fighting that arose out of this insur- 
 rection, to which the name ' War of the Blouses has 
 been giyen, cannot properly be called a war : it was 
 rather'a series of raids. The Camisards -uld issue 
 forth from their mountain fastnesses, and make an attack 
 upon a priest who had persecuted them, "P"". =^ '"°"^=- 
 tery, or upon a troop of Royalist soldiers. The attack 
 over, or the enemy proving too strong they would retreat 
 at o^ce to the hill-tops again. They knew all the paths 
 and they could climb like their own sheep or goats A 1 the 
 peasants sympathised with them, and would help them 
 to hide from the royalists. Their troops remind one of 
 the regiments of the English Puritans. Before a battle 
 there would be a meeting for prayer, and preaching, and 
 praise, at which men would exhort officers. The Cami- 
 sards marched to battle, lustily singing a hymn to the 
 God of battles, and when the fighting was over, however 
 great the carnage, on the very field uprose the song of 
 praise and thanksgiving to Him who had given them ths 
 victory. 
 
 A.D. 1703. Rising in the Cevenncs, 
 
 51 
 
 Of all their leaders, the most remarkable was Jean 
 Cavalier. In the very year in which the Edict of Nantes 
 was revoked was born this leader of the ^^^ 
 rebellion which that revocation caused. He Cavalier. 
 was of humble parentage, his father being a shepherd ; 
 and his mother had trained him in the Protestant 
 doctrines. At the age of fifteen he had to fly from the 
 country, and took service with a baker at Geneva, then, 
 as always, a hospitable place of refuge for the exile. 
 Whilst in safety, however, he felt for his kinsfolk and 
 neighbours who were suffering, and at length the * baker's 
 boy' determined to return and to rouse resistance. He 
 was only seventeen, when, on account of his manifest 
 fitness for the post, he was recognised as the General of 
 the Camisards. Bravery was a virtue that he shared with 
 all his men : he had other qualities of his own. The 
 education which he had received could have been but 
 little, and not calculated to fit him for his work. Yet he 
 was a bom general, and his manoeuvring on one occasion 
 extorted from the ablest living marshal of France the 
 praise that * it was worthy of Caesar.' 
 
 Three stories from his life in these two years will 
 serve to illustrate his daring, his chivalry, and his up- 
 rightness : — 
 
 I. On one occasion, as his men wanted powder, he 
 rode, disguised as a merchant, into the town of Nismes to 
 buy some. On entering he found all in con- 
 fusion, for a rumour had just reached the aaer. 
 town that the Camisards were preparing to ^' ^*^8- 
 attack it. The gates were immediately shut. But 
 Cavalier, having procured the powder that he wanted, 
 and carrying it about his own person, went to the officer 
 commanding a troop of cavalry that was going forth 
 against the rebels, and asked permission to ride with it. 
 The officer comphmented the supposed merchant on his 
 
 £ 2 
 
5 2 The Age of A nne. a.d. 1703. 
 
 J i---^ o*^ «ortinP- lest he should meet 
 courage, but warned him at partmg, lesi nc 
 
 2. Chivalry. ^j^^ ^j they parted. dUturbed 
 
 3. Some banditti took advantage of 'J« ^"rds, 
 
 state of the country and ^^fl^^^l,^'^,^^^^; 
 nlundered and murdered a laay. j^ 
 
 3. Upright- P J ; Cavalier set to work to find 
 
 on hearing o ^^ ^.^^j^^^^j 
 
 the men, and, havmg found them, nangc 
 
 ceremony. „,„vnration had the Cami- 
 
 ■Kr.t ha<itilv nor without provocation, uaii 
 Not hastily, nor »- „ ^ seventeen years of 
 
 sards taken up arms l;>"""f. f '„_„tion had been 
 
 Cavalier's life the persecution 
 Dragonades. jble. Nor had it been hmited to these 
 
 The relocation of the Edict was not a sudden 
 years. The ^evocation ^^^ culmina- 
 
 reversal of policy, but rather ^Mtn It ^^ ^ 
 
 tion of one long-continued. It ^^^ ^"°'' ^^ to the 
 and severity tovvards ^^^'^'^tut fle^arsanction was 
 favour of the French l^^f ■ J'^^^^'^thin a few days 
 given by the formal --evocatior^, made jn 
 
 of the king's --'":!"'XfJ^dt ron to it- ^Vhat 
 who, instigated by the Jesuits ui^ed ^ ^^^ _ ^^^ ^^^^^ 
 
 the kmg had -"-^^d before he o ^^ ^^^^^^^^ 
 
 of humanity were withdrawTi. ft ° , j^j if they 
 
 was considered ^^1^'^^^ ^'.^T^^^ attention 
 could not convert, *^y "^"f J, ^^t t^ese instrtiments of 
 was paid to no complaint against tnes ; 
 
 r, , \-t I, Tt «r;i<: in the province of LangueuoL, 
 Holy Church. It was in tne P j^^t when one 
 
 the earlier wars against the Alb, ens ^^^ ^^^ 
 
 asked how to ^^^'^^^''\'''^^^ll^\ Kill all ! God 
 believers, the savage ^"f^'er was made .^^^ 
 
 will know His own.' Peaceful valleys *ere tu 
 Tcenes of slaughter ; and the most cruel tortures, the 
 
 A.D. 1704- 
 
 Rising in tJte Cevenncs, 
 
 53 
 
 wheel and the rack, as well as the stake, completed the 
 work that the sabres of the dragoons had begun. 
 
 It is hardly to be wondered at, though it is much to be 
 deplored, that the Camisards, when at length they turned 
 upon their persecutors, retaliated with a ^^^^^^.^^ 
 fearful retribution. Cavalier himself was not 
 cruel • but many of the bands of Camisards under other 
 leaders took terrible and cruel revenge, nor was he able 
 
 to stop it. , ^ „. 
 
 All the early attempts to put down the rebelhon were 
 by means of severity. There was a feeUng of irritation, 
 both amongst the local authorities and at Writy^^^ 
 the king's court, that so insignificant a body ^^^^ ^^ 
 of peasants-for the insurgents seem never rebellion 
 to have numbered io,ooO"Should dare to resist the 
 royal authority. More troops to catch the rebels, more 
 tortures for them when caught, were the only cures that 
 occurred to their minds. As yet the external war did not 
 press very heavily upon France, and it was thought that 
 the rebellion could soon be crushed. Thus for about two 
 years the insurrection continued with varying success ; 
 the insurgents making raids, the royalists sometimes 
 intercepting them, but oftener failing. 
 
 Meanwhile the Camisards, knowing about the war 
 with the allies, made appeal to foreign Governments for 
 assistance, and especially to England and Api)eaito 
 Holland. With touching simplicity they de- ^^SL- 
 clared that they were not rebelling against ments. 
 their prince, but exercising a right of nature. * We arm 
 ourselves but to resist force. We follow but the dictates 
 of conscience. We are not to be frightened by numbers. 
 We will meet them. Yet will we harm no persons if they 
 do not harm us. But just reprisals will we ever make 
 upon our persecutors, and in this we are sanctioned by the 
 law and by the Word of God, and the practice of all 
 
54 The Age of Anne. a. d. 1704. 
 
 nations/ At first the foreign Governments turned a deaf 
 
 ear to their appeals ; but it was evident that, if a force of 
 
 the aUies could effect a junction with these insurgents, a 
 
 great blow would be struck at the French power. At 
 
 length, in 1704, a force of ships was sent, under the 
 
 Ush command of Sir Cloudesley Shovel, a gallant 
 
 fleef fent. and famous English admiral, who had risen 
 
 to that dignity from the position of a cabin-boy. WTien 
 
 the fleet arrived in the Gulf of Lyons the appointed 
 
 signals were made, which were to be answered from the 
 
 shore. But correct information had not been brought to 
 
 Cavalier, and, though he saw the signals, he did not 
 
 understand them. The admiral had received strict orders 
 
 to land no troops unless the signals were answered. He, 
 
 therefore, sailed away. 
 
 The rebellion had now lasted for so long a time 
 (upwards of two years) that Lewis determined to send 
 against the Camisards the first marshal of 
 viuS^ France. He, probably, selected Villars on 
 
 clemency. ^ccount of his military skill ; but the selection 
 was good for other reasons. Villars was no bigot, and 
 seems from his first appointment to have resolved upon a 
 poUcy of clemency. He entertained a great admiration 
 for young CavaHer. He opened negotiations with him 
 at once, and the result was that a treaty was made, by 
 which freedom of conscience, and liberty of worship, 
 except in fortified towns, were granted, together with a 
 free pardon for all the insurgents who accepted the treaty, 
 and immunity from taxes for a certain period, until the 
 district should have recovered from the effects of the war. 
 Some of the Camisards were very indignant with Cavalier 
 for signing this treaty, because the possession of certain 
 j.^^ ^j. strongholds was not granted as a guarantee 
 
 the war. for its fulfilment. They still held out ; but by 
 
 his acceptance of the treaty the rebellion was now very 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 Rising in the Cevennes, 
 
 55 
 
 much diminished, and was without great difficulty put 
 down The spirit of the treaty was not strictly observed, 
 and a great many of the inhabitants of the Cevennes 
 emigrated. The success of Lewis was in the spirit of 
 the maxim—* Solitiidimm faciunt, pacem appellant: 
 
 Cavalier himself took service with the English Go- 
 vernment, by whom he was sent into Spain. At the head 
 of a regiment of his fellow-exiles he was cavalier's 
 engaged in the famous battle of Almanza. later life. 
 The story is told how in that battle the Camisards caught 
 sight of a regiment of their former persecutors, and rushed 
 upon them with the bayonet with a fury such as shocked 
 even men accustomed to fierce battles. Of 700 Cami- 
 sards only 300 survived, and Cavalier himself, severely 
 wounded, was left among the dead. He afterguards 
 became a general in the English army, was Governor of 
 Jersey, then of the Isle of Wight, and died an old man at 
 
 Chelsea 
 
 As France had a weak point in the disaffection of the 
 Huguenots, so the Empire was weak on its eastern side. 
 From one opponent— the Turks— it had, per- similar 
 haps, not much to fear ; for the Turks had troubiejn 
 suffered severely at the hands of Eugene m 
 the last war, and were, moreover, obliged now to turn 
 their eyes in another direction, towards the growing 
 power of Russia. But in wars against the Empire the 
 Turks had always found allies in Hungary and Transyl- 
 vania. The disaffection in these two provinces ^^^^^ 
 was due, partly to the pressure of taxation, 
 partly to differences in religion, but chiefly to that desirft 
 for separation from Austria which has so often shown 
 itself in Hungary. The taxes were very heavy through- 
 out all the Austrian dominions. The Protestants in 
 Hungary had been persecuted by the Emperor, and this 
 had led to the last Hungarian insurrection, when the 
 
56 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 Turks, instigated by the Hungarians, had invaded Austria 
 and besieged Vienna. The desire for separation was 
 constant. During the War of the Succession, the con- 
 dition of Hungary might be compared to a fire that is 
 composed of smouldering embers, ready at any moment 
 to break into a flame. Here and there flames showed 
 themselves when a turbulent noble headed an insurrection. 
 But, as the Empire was on the winning side elsewhere, 
 these rebellions never became formidable. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 I 
 
 ':f.. 
 
 BLENHEIM. 
 
 In the spring of 1704 Lewis determined to make a 
 great effort. He raised as many troops as he could, and 
 Object of sent diflerent armies against different mem- 
 France in ijgj-s of the Grand Alliance. But his chief 
 Smpafgn.^ attempt was to be against the Emperor. He 
 determined to make a vigorous lunge at Vienna, the 
 heart of the Empire, and to compel the Emperor to make 
 peace under the walls of his own capital. To this object 
 two things helped. Bavaria was Lewis's single ally ; and 
 Bavaria could be used by the French as an advanced 
 outpost, in an attack on the Austrian dominions. More- 
 over, whilst the Austrians were thus exposed in front, 
 they were also weakened in the rear by the revolt of the 
 Hungarians. The Hungarians had been long in revolt, 
 ■ which had been sedulously fomented with French gold. 
 They were at present quiet ; but it was hoped that the 
 appearance of a French army before Vienna would be 
 the signal for a general uprising of the Hungarians ; and 
 Hungary lies dangerously near Vienna. Already a French 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 Blenheim. 
 
 57 
 
 army under Marshal Marsin was in Bavaria with the 
 Elector ; to this others were to join themselves, and then 
 the advance was to be made. 
 
 Though this well-concerted plan was not divulged, 
 Marlborough with the instinct of genius understood the 
 meaning of the preparations, and determined ^^^_ 
 to defeat them. He communicated his design ^'{^^"sb's 
 to only one man, Prince Eugene, whom he ^*"" 
 promised to meet in Bavaria, that with their united 
 armies they might face the invading French, and thus 
 save the Empire and with it the Grand Alliance. Marl- 
 borough used his influence in England both to have 
 10,000 men added to the EngHsh army, and to have his 
 instructions drawn up with some latitude. He turned 
 the opposition of the States of Holland by marching with 
 the alhed army towards the Moselle, and only then 
 revealing to the States his intention to march to Bavaria 
 to help the Emperor— with the Dutch troops, if they gave 
 the permission, but if not, without them. The States saw 
 that it was too late to oppose, and not only gave the 
 desired permission, but generously sent reinforcements 
 and supplies. Across the Moselle, and across the Rhine, 
 then up the valley of the Maine Marlborough marched ; 
 the enemy, and even his own soldiers, only conjecturing 
 the object of the enterprise. In the Duchy of Wurtem- 
 burg he met Prince Eugene, and they spent He joins 
 three days together. It was the first time E"gene. 
 they had seen each other ; and now was laid the foun- 
 dation of the lifelong and unclouded friendship which 
 forms so noble a feature in the character of each. 
 
 Here they were joined by Prince Lewis of Baden, a 
 German general of the old methodical school, who 
 claimed precedence over the others. Marl- Lewis of 
 borough proposed that he should devote Baden, 
 himself to the task of watching the French frontier, and 
 
 K 
 
 : ^1 
 
58 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 preventing the expected union of another French army 
 with those already in Bavaria. But Prince Lewis de- 
 chned, and Eugene had reluctantly to depart upon this 
 duty, for which, however, it was manifest he was much 
 better suited. Marlborough then acquiesced in an ar- 
 rangement by which Prince Lewis and he should divide 
 the command, taking it on alternate days. 
 
 The first achievement of the allied army was the 
 storming of the Schellenberg, a hill just above the town 
 of Donauworth upon the Danube. The 
 Ichdie?- °^ Bavarians occupied it in force, and the alhed 
 berg. troops, when they came up, were tired with a 
 
 long march. But it was Marlborough's day, and he knew 
 not what the prince would do upon the morrow. More- 
 over, though the hill was strongly fortified, the intrench- 
 ments were not quite completed. So Marlborough gave 
 to his wearied troops the order to attack. Twice they 
 charged up the hill, and twice they were repulsed. The 
 third time they were reinforced by some German soldiers, 
 and led by Prince Lewis himself, of whose personal 
 courage there was no doubt, whatever might be the 
 feeUng as to his generalship. This time the Bavarians 
 were routed. In their flight a new disaster fell upon 
 them. They were hurrying across the Danube, over a 
 long wooden bridge, and when some 2,000 had crossed, 
 the weight of the fugitives broke the bridge, and many 
 were hurled into the swift stream. 
 
 The day after this engagement Marlborough heard 
 that, in spite of the watchfulness of Prince Eugene, a 
 „,/,.. considerable French army, under Marshal 
 Tauard joms ^^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^ distinguished French 
 
 generals, and the same who had been ambassador to 
 King William at the time of the Partition Treaty, had 
 passed through the defiles of the Black Forest, and had 
 effected a junction with the armies of Marshal Marsin 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 Blenheim. 
 
 59 
 
 and of the Elector of Bavaria. Eugene now joined the 
 others, and it was decided that Ingolstadt should be 
 attacked, a strong and a virgin fortress, and important 
 because it commanded the Danube. His colleagues were 
 glad to find that the attempt upon Ingolstadt was re- 
 garded by Prince Lewis as worthy of his dignity ; and 
 they were thus relieved from the presence of an unde- 
 sirable colleague. 
 
 Receiving information that the united French forces 
 were at Hochstadt, the scene of their triumph of the 
 previous year, Marlborough and Eugene preparations 
 advanced to meet them. On August 12, the for battle. 
 two generals, mounting the church tower in one of the 
 villages on the road, saw the encampments of the French 
 army. It was at once determined to give battle ; and the 
 men joyfully prepared for it. Some of the officers 
 ventured to point out the dangers of their position to 
 Marlborough ; but he answered that a battle was 
 necessary, and that he trusted in the bravery of his 
 troops. The early part of that night Marlborough spent 
 in prayer ; he then received the Communion at the hands 
 of his private chaplain, and, after a short rest, was again 
 in council with Eugene. With the first streaks of 
 dawn on the morning of August 13, at three o'clock, the 
 army was in motion. A haze covered the ground ; but 
 at six they were visible to the French, and a cannonade 
 commenced ; to which the English artillery replied, 
 whilst the troops on either side were deploying into line. 
 
 The village of Blindhcim, or Blenheim, which has 
 given its name to this famous battle, is situated on the 
 north bank of the Danube. The river is j^^^^ription 
 about one hundred yards broad, and its ofthe 
 stream is very swift ; just before reaching the ^^^ ' 
 village the river makes a loop to the south. A short 
 distance below the village the Danube is joined by a 
 
 t 
 
 i 
 
 ii<) 
 
 ■F 
 
6o 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 little brook, the Nebel. Almost parallel with the Danube, 
 about three miles distant, is a low range of thickly- 
 wooded hills : they are a continuation at a lower level 
 of the Schellenberg, \vhich at Donauworth (nine miles 
 down the stream) almost overhangs the Danube. From 
 these hills flows the Nebel, which is but a little stream : 
 in some places a boy could jump across it, divided as it is 
 into several branches. The country is well drained now; 
 but then the land between the branches was little better 
 
 than a swamp. Two little hamlets are on this brook : 
 the lower, Unterglau, is about a mile from Blenheim ; 
 Oberglau is higher up. They are perhaps three-quarters 
 of a mile apart. On an arm of the stream on the slope 
 of the hill is a larger village, Lutzingen, which is not 
 however as big as Blenheim. 
 
 When both armies were ready for the battle, the 
 Nebel divided them. Marlborough's forces, which were 
 chiefly English, were on the left of the alUes, reaching 
 
 Blefihehn* 
 
 61 
 
 A.D. 1704- 
 
 down to the Danube. To Prince Eugene with a more 
 composite army, the right was assigned higher up the little 
 brook Tallard with the troops that he had position of 
 brought opposed Marlborough. Maximilian, theann.es 
 the Elector of Bavaria, and M arshal Marsin were stationed 
 opposite Eugene, the rear of the French left wing being 
 in the village of Lutzingen. But Tallard, though he had 
 a great reputation, was not an able general, and com- 
 mitted a fatal mistake in the disposition of his troops, 
 arising probably from his confident belief that he was 
 destined to have an easy victory. He stationed seventeen 
 battalions of his best troops in the village of Blenheim, 
 where their movements were hampered by want of space. 
 They were too many for the defence of the village, and 
 those not wanted for that purpose were useless for any 
 other. Moreover, the centre of the French army, the 
 line of communication with the other wing, was propor- 
 tionately weakened. This weakening helped the victory 
 of the allies : the crowding of the troops made that 
 victory more complete. 
 
 On account of the uneven nature of the ground 
 Prince Eugene took some time to get his troops into 
 position. Marlborough occupied the interval xhe battle 
 by ordering prayers to be read at the head begins, 
 of each regiment. Then with some of his principal 
 officers he sat down to breakfast. At midday an aide- 
 de-camp galloped up with the message that Eugene was 
 ready. ' Now, gentlemen, to your posts,' said Marlborough 
 cheerfully. There was no delay. On the ^^^^^^^^ 
 left of the hne English troops advanced to 
 attack the village of Blenheim, under the command of 
 Lord Cutts, reputed to be the bravest officer in the 
 English army, and so fearless under fire that he had 
 received the nickname of * Salamander.' But Blenheim 
 was strongly defended. There was a strong barrier of 
 
 
62 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 Blenheim. 
 
 65 
 
 palisades, and behind them a needlessly large number 
 of the best regiments of French infantry. The English 
 troops were forced back twice, and then received orders 
 to keep up firing, but not again to advance until a diver- 
 sion had been made. 
 
 Meanwhile, on the right, Eugene was attacking 
 Marshal Marsin and the Elector. First he led his cavalry 
 to the charge : the front Hne of the enemy 
 Allied nght. ^^^^ broken, and a battery of six guns taken. 
 But the second line stood firm, his cavalry recoiled ; and 
 the battery was retaken. Eugene, no longer able to 
 trust his cavalry, galloped off for his infantry, who 
 were chiefly Prussian. It was the steadiness of these 
 Prussian infantry that saved the battle on the right 
 
 wmg. 
 
 In the centre Marlborough was superintending the 
 passage of the Nebel by his cavalry ; but the passage 
 was a matter of difficulty, because the ground 
 ^*"''"^' was exceedingly swampy. Fascines were 
 
 thrown in, and pontoons used where possible. Tallard 
 undoubtedly made a great mistake in not attacking the 
 cavalry during the crossing. He seems to have thought 
 that when over they would fall an easy prey. It was not 
 until the first line was formed that the French charged, 
 but then without any marked result. 
 
 To the right of the centre a considerable force of the 
 allies had made an attack on the village of Oberglau. 
 They had taken it, and were then attacked in 
 Oberglau. ^^^^^ ^^^ driven from it by the Irish Brigade, 
 a vahant regiment of Irish exiles in the service of France. 
 The Irishmen rushed forward, and had broken the line 
 of the allies, and almost severed the communications 
 with Eugene. Marlborough was told, and at once 
 galloped up, and by his exertions restored the battle, 
 driving back with his cavalry the Irish, who were dis- 
 
 ordered with their success, and posting infantry so as to 
 enfilade them on their retreat. 
 
 The afternoon was now far spent; as yet all that 
 could be said was that there had been an alternation of 
 success, and that both sides were holding their cavalry 
 ground. But the generalship and the exer- charge, 
 tions of Marlborough were about to be rewarded. At 
 five o'clock the whole body of his cavalry had been 
 brought across, and he ordered the advance. At the 
 sound of the trumpet about 8,000 splendidly mounted 
 horsemen moved up the gentle slope, at first slowly and 
 then more and more quickly. Once the advance was 
 checked, and they recoiled for about sixty paces. Then 
 the signal to advance was sounded again, and at a 
 magnificent pace the whole line charged. The French 
 cavalry fired their carbines, wheeled and fled. 'The 
 bulk of our cavalry,' said Tallard afterwards, in his 
 official report, * did ill, I say it, very ill' Marlborough 
 had won. The French hne was cut in two. Some 
 infantry which had been brought up to support the 
 horse were compelled to surrender. The cavalry were in 
 full flight, part towards Hochstadt, part towards Blenheim. 
 Marlborough pursued the latter, sending a Dutch general 
 after the former. Marshal Tallard was caught before he 
 could make his escape into Blenheim. Marl- Marl- 
 borough put him in' his own carriage, and ^f^- 
 then hastily wrote in pencil a note to the victory, 
 duchess, which his aide-de-camp was to take at once 
 with the news of the victory to England. It is still 
 preserved and runs thus : — 
 
 'August 13, 1704. 
 
 * I have not time to zay more, but to beg you will 
 give my duty to the Queen, and let her know Her Army 
 has had a Glorious Victory. Monsr. Tallard and two 
 other Generals are in my Coach, and I am following the 
 
64 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1704. 
 
 rest. The bearer, my Aide-de-camp, Coll. Parke, will 
 give Her an account of what has pass'd. I shall doe 
 it in a day or two by another more att large. 
 
 * Marlborough.' 
 
 The French battalions in Blenheim, meanwhile, were 
 hemmed in between the English troops and the Danube. 
 The French Some, and amongst them, their commander, 
 in Blenheim, tried to swim the river, but it was too swift 
 and they were drowned. During the summer evening, 
 and after night came on, the English were firing into the 
 thick masses in Blenheim. Every attempt to escape was 
 stopped. At length it became manifest that nothing 
 could be gained by further bloodshed. Great was the 
 despair of the gallant French soldiers : one regiment 
 burnt its colours. Then they surrendered. 
 
 Eugene had made repeated attacks upon his opponents. 
 About the time of the great cavalry charge he advanced, 
 and took the village of Lutzingen ; but there was no 
 rout of the Bavarians and French opposed to him. The 
 troops retreated in good order. Marlborough 
 ftSon ascribed the ill success of Eugene to ill luck ; 
 Lutzingen. < |£ j^jg fortune had been equal to his merit/ 
 he said, ' this day would have finished the war.' As a 
 compliment he determined to divide the prisoners, who 
 amounted in all to about 1 1,000, with Prince Eugene. 
 
 There is a good deal of difference in accounts of the 
 
 battle, especially as to the numbers of the combatants. It 
 
 would seem from the best authorities that the 
 
 Numbers. ^^.^^ j^^^ ^y^^^^ 52,000, the French about 
 
 60,000 men : and that of these the former lost 11,000, 
 the latter 40,000, in killed and prisoners. 
 
 It is almost impossible to exaggerate the importance 
 of this victory, which broke the power of Lewis XIV., 
 and destroyed the prestige of the French arms. Marl- 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 Lord Peterborough, 
 
 6S 
 
 borough was received everywhere with delight. In Eng- 
 land the joy was great. The royal manor of Woodstock 
 was conferred on him and his heirs, and the 
 Palace of Blenheim was commenced as a "^^^^ "*"''• 
 monument of a nation's gratitude. The Emperor made 
 him a prince of the Empire, and bestowed on him the 
 principality of Mindelsheim in Bavaria. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 LORD PETERBOROUGH. 
 
 In 1705 the English Government determined to make a 
 vigorous push in Spain. The command of the new 
 expedition was given to Charles Mordaunt, 
 Earl of Peterborough, one of the most re- pl[tr°' 
 markable soldiers of his time, and especially ^'•o"«h. 
 suited for the work now set before him. Bom two years 
 before the Restoration, he had served when a boy in the 
 Mediterranean fleet. Changing his profession, as was 
 then often done, he had been subsequently engaged in 
 fighting in Africa. From his seat in the House of Lords 
 he had opposed the will of James II. upon the Test Act. 
 He found it advisable to take refuge in Holland, and was 
 the first English nobleman who pressed upon William of 
 Orange that he should stand forth as the deliverer of 
 England. For the two years that preceded the Revolu- 
 tion he was constantly with him ; and when the Revolu- 
 tion was accomplished he was rewarded with the title of 
 Eari of Monmouth, and with the offices of Lord of the 
 Bedchamber, and First Commissioner of the Treasury. 
 Lord Monmouth, however, was not the man steadily to 
 retain the king's favour : and during the reign he lost 
 first his civil, and then all his offices, and was imprisoned 
 m the Tower. His disgrace rested upon doubtful 
 
 M. H, F 
 
66 TheAgeofAnni. a. d. 1705- 
 
 evidence, and he was soon released. In .697 he suc- 
 ceeded t; his uncle's title as Earl of Peterborough ; but 
 it" as not until Queen Anne's rei^ ^^^'fhaKseS 
 part in public life. He had been offered and had ■■efused 
 Ae chief command of the forces in the West Ind^s 
 is said that it was at Marlborough's suggestion tnat th.s 
 new command in Spain was given to him. . 
 
 Throutline of his life gives but a slight indication of 
 his character. Its predominant feature -- ^ "27 
 invaluable where energy was wanted , other 
 Character. ^^.j^^ jj t^ok the form of restlcssness. Had 
 he anv definite work to do there was no man so fertile m 
 resources none who would do it so quickly. But obstacles 
 'luld fre him : he had not the patience of Marlborough. 
 w£ unemployed, he would travel over Europe Njnth 
 altomshTnl r'apidity- It was said that he was faster than 
 Tny courier. He was not like ordinary men and would 
 have been better suited for the days of knight-errantry. 
 He had all the virtues of chivalry. He was verj^ generous 
 Sidlevoted to the fair sex. ^Je could insp..^^^^^^^ 
 
 ^^^^TT^^.T^^:^^^^^ that he had no 
 mean opinion of himself, and that his open, free way of 
 talking made him many enemies. 
 
 Swifts A few lively lines by Dean Swift give us a 
 
 very vivid idea of Lord Peterborough : 
 
 account 
 of him. 
 
 Mordanto fills the trump of fame : 
 The Christian worids his deeds proclaim, 
 And prints are crowded with his name. 
 In journeys he outrides the post. 
 Sits up till midnight with his host, 
 Talks politics, and gives the toast : 
 Knows every prince in Europe's face. 
 Flies like a squib from place to place. 
 And travels not, but runs a race. • . . 
 
 AD. 1705. 
 
 Lord Peterborough. 
 
 67 
 
 A messenger comes all a-reek, 
 Mordanto at Madrid to seek : 
 He left the town above a week. 
 
 Next day the post-boy winds his horn, 
 And rides through Dover in the morn— 
 Mordanto's landed from Ixghom. . . . 
 
 So wonderful his expedition, 
 
 When you have not the least suspicion 
 
 He's with you like an apparition — 
 
 A skeleton in outward figure. 
 
 His meagre corpse, though full of vigour, 
 
 Would halt behind him were it bigger. 
 
 The commission which Peterborough received from 
 the Home Government was purposely drawn with great 
 latitude, and was exactly calculated to suit 
 his peculiar genius. He had full command borough's 
 over the army, and a joint control with Sir commi:>sion. 
 Cloudesley Shovel over the navy when he was on board. 
 It was pointed out to him that the provinces of Catalonia 
 and Valencia were believed to be favourable to the cause 
 of the Archduke Charles ; and various places along the 
 coast of Spain, and even on the Mediterranean shore of 
 France, were suggested to him as inviting attack. The 
 greatest stress was la'd on Barcelona, a large commercial 
 town on the sea-coast and the capital of Catalonia. 
 
 The force amounted to about 5,000 men, two-thirds 
 English and one-third Dutch. It was very badly pro- 
 vided with stores, or with money to purchase ^ 
 
 Procnrcss oi 
 
 them. Peterborough's first act on landing at the expc- 
 Lisbon, to which he first sailed, was on his '^'"°"" 
 own responsibility to remedy the want of stores. Here, 
 also, two regiments of dragoons were spared by the Earl 
 of Galway to add to the force. The Archduke Charles, 
 who had been with Galway's army in Portugal, now 
 joined himself to Peterborough, and when the force 
 
 F 2 
 
68 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 17c 5, 
 
 Lord Peterborough. 
 
 69 
 
 stopped a little later at Gibraltar, the Prince of Hesse 
 Darmstadt joined likewise. He had been popular as 
 governor of Catalonia in the last reign, and it was thought 
 that his presence might win over some of the natives. 
 
 The fleet next cast anchor off Valencia, where Peter- 
 borough proposed a bold scheme, a foretaste of the 
 Valencia romantic adventures which have made his 
 
 Peter- expedition memorable. He proposed to 
 
 ^opoSl.' march at once upon Madrid, which was only 
 150 miles distant : the road lay through the province of 
 Valencia, which was mainly favourable. There was no 
 army at Madrid ; and if the French army that was now 
 facing Galway, on the frontier of Portugal, should turn to 
 Madrid, to expel the bold invaders, it would be exposed 
 to attack upon two sides at once. If the archduke had not 
 been on board the fleet, Peterborough, having full powers, 
 would doubtless have carried out his plan with a result 
 which, from later experience, it is quite possible to guess. 
 But, in a war waged to place the archduke upon the 
 throne of Spain, it was not possible to act contrar>' to his 
 wishes. He opposed the plan very strongly when it was 
 laid before him ; and it was rejected altogether by a 
 council of war. It was therefore determined to proceed 
 
 to Barcelona. 
 
 But Barcelona was one of the best fortified and 
 strongest cities in Spain. It was absurd that so small a 
 force should think of laying formal siege to 
 Barcelona. j^ . -^ ^^g ^^^ ^ quarter large enough even 
 for one line. The garrison was about as numerous as 
 the assailants. The would-be king and the Prince of 
 Hesse were very anxious that an attempt should be 
 made : they especially maintnned that the inhabitants of 
 the surrounding country would join. The troops and 
 artillery were landed; some 1,500 Miquelets, as the 
 picturesquely-armed peasants of the province were called, 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 came to the camp. During three weeks there were 
 disputes in the force. The archduke and the Prince of 
 Hesse were taunting Peterborough, and insisting upon an 
 attack. The officers of the navy joined them in regarding 
 it as feasible. The officers of the army declared that it 
 was hopeless, the general of the Dutch contingent going 
 so far as to refuse to lead his men to certain destruction. 
 Peterborough was distracted between them, but he at 
 length gave way to the latter. The heavy guns were 
 again embarked. A public entertainment was given in 
 Barcelona in honour of the departure of the force. Next 
 morning, however, the English flag was waving from the 
 fort that commanded the city. 
 
 The town of Barcelona lies between the sea and this 
 strong fort or citadel, which is called Monjuich. It is 
 situated on the last of a range of hills, and, j^j^^.^j^^ 
 as it really commanded Barcelona, it had 
 been fortified with especial care. It was believed to be 
 impregnable : on this account the soldiers of the garrison 
 were negligent. Lord Peterborough, expecting this, de- 
 termined to attempt a sudden assault. 
 
 To reach Monjuich from the English camp without 
 giving an alarm it was necessary to march about nine 
 miles. The night was dark; the force Capture of 
 selected consisted of i ,200 foot and 200 horse, ^^onj^'ch. 
 Peterborough, as he was moving out of the camp, stopped 
 at the quarters of the Prince of Hesse, inviting him to 
 accompany them to * see whether they deserved the bad 
 character which he had so liberally given them.' Much 
 astonished, he came at once. Two hours before dawn 
 the troops arrived beneath Monjuich, but Peterborough 
 did not intend a night attack. He explained to his men 
 the nature of the fortifications. There was an inner 
 circle of works ; round these there was a ditch. The 
 English were to receive the enemy's fire, and then jump 
 
70 
 
 . The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 A.D. 1705- 
 
 Lord Peterborough. 
 
 71 
 
 
 4i 
 
 into this ditch : the enemy would come forward to attack 
 them, and they were then to advance, driving the enemy 
 back, and following them closely into the inner fortifica- 
 tions. The little force was divided into three columns ; 
 Peterborough, with the prince, attacking the most dan- 
 gerous part, a bastion on the Barcelona side. As he had 
 said, so it happened. All except the innermost fort fell 
 into Peterborough's hands. 
 
 The Prince of Hesse there lost his life. A reinforce- 
 ment of dragoons was sent from Barcelona to Monjuich. 
 As they entered they were received with cheers. The 
 prince thought the cheering meant that the place had 
 surrendered, and, hastening to secure it, was shot just as 
 he discovered his mistake. An alarm arose that a large 
 force was coming from Barcelona to the relief of Monjuich. 
 Peterborough went to reconnoitre. In his absence a 
 panic seized upon the troops. Some of the soldiers 
 suggested to the officer who was left in command that 
 they should retreat, and he at once adopted the suggestion. 
 Captain Carleton, who has written an account of the 
 campaign, tells us how he himself heard this, and spurred 
 his horse after Peterborough, who without a word 
 galloped back, shouted to the men that they were march- 
 ing in a wrong direction, restored confidence by the 
 magic of his presence, and promptly recovered the 
 position which had been so rashly endangered. 
 
 The guns were landed again, and in less than three 
 days the whole of the fortress of Monjuich was in the 
 hands of the English. Great enthusiasm was 
 Ba?ceW now aroused, when Peterborough at once 
 October 23. turned to the siege of the town of Barcelona. 
 The sailors wanted to serve in the batteries on shore : the 
 soldiers vied with them in their efforts. Very soon the 
 town capitulated without there being the necessity for an 
 assault. The Catalans from the neighbourhood were so 
 
 angry that the town had held out against the cause 
 which they espoused that the English general had great 
 difficulty in preserving order, and in preventing terrible 
 
 violence and plunder. 
 
 The results of this brilliant achievement were very 
 important. Almost all Catalonia declared for the Arch- 
 duke Charles. Soldiers of Philip's army cataionia 
 deserted in numbers : new recruits came in. ^^^^J^f^^,^ 
 The belief that Catalonia was still disaffected 
 to the general Government of Spain, and incHned to the 
 House of Austria, because Castile was in favour of the 
 French prince, was fully justified. The example was 
 infectious. The town of Valencia, and the greater part 
 of the province of that name, soon submitted, ^nd 
 Peterborough was very anxious to follow up Valencia, 
 these successes, and to continue the vigorous push which, 
 in accordance with his instructions, he had been making. 
 Had he been properly supported, it is difficult to con- 
 jecture what would have stopped his success. But 
 unfortunately those with him, whether Dutch generals or 
 English officers, or the Archduke Charles himself, had 
 not his energy. They determined upon letting the navy 
 retire to Lisbon, and sending the army into winter 
 quarters in the different towns which had espoused 
 their side. These contingents were insufficient to hold 
 the towns, and a considerable portion of the army re- 
 mained useless in Barcelona. 
 
 On the other hand, the Spanish Government was not 
 prepared to remain idle. They sent 7,000 men, under 
 one of their best generals, to recover San g^j^^^^^, 
 Mateo, a town important, not for its size, but 
 for its situation on a pass between Catalonia and Va- 
 lencia. In this place an English colonel had been 
 stationed with a force of 500 irregulars. Peterborough 
 marched to its relief with only 1,200 men, and raised the 
 
72 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 siege. He was always well served by spies ; and, by 
 arranging that one should be captured with false de- 
 spatches, he created in the mind of the Spanish general 
 the impression that the relieving army was much larger 
 than his own. He precipitately retreated towards Va- 
 lencia ; but Peterborough was not content with reheving 
 the town. With his small force, and keeping up the 
 same impression, although it was the depth of winter, and 
 in a mountainous country, he pursued the retreating 
 army. 
 
 He had not followed it for more than six leagues, 
 when he received doleful news from Barcelona, that no 
 Pursuit of less than three armies were being concentrated 
 Spaniards. upon the town, and all the troops were required 
 that King Charles could muster. After some hesitation 
 Lord Peterborough sent his infantry to the sea-port of 
 Vinarezjthat they might thence be conveyed to Barcelona. 
 He determined, with his 200 horsemen, to continue the 
 pursuit. By very rapid movements, his men appearing 
 now on the right, now on the left flank of the enemy, and 
 concealing by various devices his inferiority of numbers, 
 he followed the strong Spanish army. The town of 
 Nules, strongly attached to the cause of King Philip, he 
 took in the following manner. He rode up to the gate 
 and asked for a magistrate or priest. A priest came. 
 Peterborough told him that he gave them only six minutes 
 in which to surrender ; else he would, when his artillery 
 came up, assault and give no quarter. They surrendered, 
 but he had no artillery. 
 
 He heard that the Spaniards had determined on 
 besieging the town of Valencia, and he felt it was abso- 
 F I its f lut^ely necessary to relieve it He sent, 
 Peter- therefore, quickly for his own infantry from 
 
 oroug . Vinarez, and for reinforcements from Cata- 
 lonia. Wanting cavalry, he converted 600 infantry into 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 Lord PeterborougL 
 
 75 
 
 horse soldiers. A regiment of foot was being reviewed. 
 Peterborough said to the officers, * How would you like 
 your men to be mounted on good horses ? * He led them 
 on a little further. There were 600 horses ready saddled 
 and bridled, which the general had bought at Nules. 
 
 At Murviedro the road to Valencia was stopped by a 
 force under an Irish officer in the Spanish service. He 
 was a kinsman of Peterborough, who took advantage of 
 the fact to make proposals to him that he should desert, 
 and when he firmly refused, Peterborough, by means of 
 feigned deserters, spread a report of his treason. The 
 result was, that in the general mistrust Peterborough 
 passed him, and on February 4 entered Valencia. But 
 not yet did he rest there. He heard that a body of 4,000 
 men was marching to reinforce the Spanish army. At 
 dead of night he set out with one-fourth the number, 
 crossed the river Xucar, attacked and dispersed the force, 
 and returned to Valencia with 600 prisoners. There was 
 no further danger for Valencia. For the remainder of 
 the winter Peterborough and his men enjoyed their well- 
 earned repose. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE YEAR OF VICTORY, 1706. 
 
 Section I. — Ramillies, 
 
 The year 1706 was the most important in the whole war 
 to the cause of the allies, for in that year they won 
 brilliant successes in three different quarters, success 
 In Spain there was at the same time the tri- in three 
 
 . . - , . , T-. 1 1- quarters. 
 
 umphant raismg of the siege of Barcelona by 
 
 Lord Peterborough, and the march of Lord Galway to 
 
The Age of A nne, a. d. 1 706. 
 
 1 1 ' i" 
 
 74 
 
 Madrid In the Netherlands the easily-won victory of 
 Slles led to the recovery of the whole country from 
 The French In Italy Eugene's brilliant victory brought 
 Ibout L raising of the siege "^ ^unn and was fo^^^^^^^^^ 
 by the overthrow of the French cause throughout the 
 whole of not only Savoy but Italy. . . 
 
 Marlborough, knowing the crmcal ^«-« "^ f^^'^^, "^ 
 Italy, had wished to be allowed to repeat theca-P^'^ 
 of Blenheim, and, marching his army quickly 
 Kugh into Italy, to join with Eugene in ra.smg the 
 
 s=ts out. 5igge of Turin ; but his army was composed oi 
 
 contingents from different allies, whose 1^^^^"/^;;° 
 ask to take them, and this was refused by many ot the 
 dSe en Governments. The Dutch were especially afraid 
 that their border would again be left unprotected. Ac- 
 ;"g in the reversal of his policy, M-l'^o-^^^- 
 off to meet the enemy ' with a heavy heart. Yet he was 
 marching to one of his most brilliant victories. 
 
 He had under him in the Netherlands a force of 
 
 about 60,000 men, most of whom were English and 
 about 00, ^^^^^ , ^^^^^ j^ j^i^ ^^s Marshal Vil- 
 
 The armies. ^ ^jth a French army of about the same 
 
 size as his own. With him was the £'-"■• °^f,;fX' 
 ready to fulfil his own saying, when off^^^J^^^^^^''^: 
 allies that ' since the wine was abroach he was reaoy <. 
 d ink tl the lees.' The French general ~ to h^^^^^^ 
 known that the allies were late in making preparations 
 and to have thought that by a speedy advance he might 
 find Marlborough with his English troops alone, and 
 Unprepared. He'leamt his mistake when they met on the 
 
 battle-field of RamiUies. 
 
 The village which has given Its name to this tote 
 
 stands in the middle of a high plain m 
 The ground, grabant. Three rivers rise close by it. i ne 
 Little Gheet and the Great Gheet, mere brooks, flow north- 
 
 A.D.I706. The Year of Victory. 75 
 
 wards, uniting at some leagues' distance, and then flowing 
 into a tributary of the Scheldt. They are separated by a 
 narrow belt of land, at first not more than a mile m 
 breadth, but expanding as they flow apart. The Mehaigne 
 to the south of the field flows eastward, then some miles 
 further on turns south, and joins the Meuse. The French 
 right wing rested on the Mehaigne at the village of 
 Tavieres; their line extended in a large arc, the centre 
 being strongly stationed in the village of Ramilhes and 
 
 BATTLE 
 
 of 
 
 RAMILLIES 
 
 at Offiiz, which lies a httle to its left ; the left of the 
 whole line was at the village of Anderkirk on the Little 
 Gheet. Marlborough took advantage of this arrangement. 
 It is manifest that if two armies face each other one in a 
 concave and the other in a convex order, the latter has 
 this advantage, that troops can be more quickly moved 
 from one flank to the other. 
 
 Behind the French line, between the right and centre 
 where the cavalry were stationed, stands an old barrow 
 
76 
 
 Tfu Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 Marl- 
 borough's 
 plan. 
 
 called the Tomb of Ottomond. Marlborough saw that 
 this commanded the field, and made it his object to 
 break through the line and secure it. To 
 conceal his design be made a vehement at- 
 tack on the French left, to strengthen which 
 Villeroy sent his reserve and all the soldiers that he could 
 spare. Marlborough then, in such a way that they were 
 not missed, detached a large body of troops, who marched, 
 hidden by a slightly-rising ground, to reinforce his own 
 
 left. 
 
 But before the attempt to break through the line was 
 carried out, the attack on Anderkirk was followed by 
 Battle of assauhs on the villages of Ramillies and 
 RamiUies, Tavieres. The latter was quickly carried. 
 K^.lild. The real crisis of the battle was the cavalry 
 fight that followed. The Dutch general charged, and the 
 first line of the French was driven back. But the second 
 line consisted of the finest troops of France— the Maison 
 du Roi— the French Household Brigade, the regiment 
 which had won Steinkirk, and which consisted now, as 
 then, of the young nobles, famous for their valour, and 
 careless of their lives. The Dutch were driven back. 
 Marlborough ordered up every available sabre, and him- 
 self galloped to the front. J ust as he was coming forward, 
 he was recognised by some French dragoons who nearly 
 made him prisoner. Sword in hand he fought himself 
 free, and tried to make his horse leap a ditch, but he fell 
 to the ground. An aide-de-camp brought him another 
 horse, and as a colonel held the stirrup, a cannon ball 
 took off his head. Saved as it were by miracle, Marl- 
 borough headed the charge. The famous French 
 regiment was overpowered by numbers, the village of 
 Ramillies was taken, and immediately afterwards the 
 Tomb of Ottomond. The French line was thus cut in 
 two. 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 TJie Year of Victory, 
 
 M B 
 
 The French still held Anderkirk, the village on their 
 left, and the advance of the allies was impeded by the 
 confusion which reigned all over the field. End of the 
 Marlborough halted his troops to re-form b=^"*«* 
 their lines, and the French bravely attempted to fa<^e 
 them. When Marlborough once more ordered the 
 advance to be sounded, a panic seized the French, and 
 they fled. The battle had lasted three hours. Till late 
 into the night the flying French were pursued by the 
 English cavalry. All their artillery, except six guns, 
 fell into the hands of the allies. The French lost in 
 killed, wounded, and prisoners, 15,000 men ; the allies 
 less than a quarter of that number. 
 
 The battle of Ramillies was by no means so valiantly 
 contested as 'that of Blenheim. Its results, however, were 
 quite as important. Blenheim saved the Results of 
 Empire; Ramillies conquered the Nether- Ramillies. 
 lands. Marshal Villeroy and the Elector of Bavaria 
 halted in Louvain ; but they decided that they could not 
 hold it, and the town capitulated next morning. Brussels, 
 the capital of Brabant, opened its gates to Towns fail 
 the conquerors, and proclaimed the Arch- o/Mar"**^ 
 duke Charles as its sovereign. Marlborough, borough, 
 in his name, guaranteed the liberties of the province, as 
 the archduke himself had done in Catalonia. 
 Moreover, when the Dutch wished to levy a 
 contribution on the inhabitants of Brabant towards the 
 expenses of the war, and the English Government were 
 inclined to adopt the policy, Marlborough protested so 
 warmly, that the scheme was not carried out. Other 
 towns hastened to follow the example of Brussels. The 
 fortresses occupied by French troops alone held out. 
 Marlborough first proceeded to Antwerp, 
 which was expected to cause him trouble; but '**^* 
 a quarrel had begun between the French soldiers and 
 
 Brussels. 
 
 I 
 
7^ 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 the Walloons, who jointly formed the garrison. The 
 latter declared for the allies, and this strong fortress was 
 captured without a blow. Ghent and Bruges, the two 
 chief cities of Flanders, opened their gates. Then 
 Marlborough advanced upon Ostend, and began the siege 
 with such vigour that it surrendered in nine days. Menin 
 is a strong fortress on the Lys, which now 
 Menin. serves as a boundary between France and 
 
 Belgium, for Vauban, the great French engineer, had 
 fortified it with all his art. Lewis had by this time sent 
 his bravest marshal, Vendome, to restore the fortunes of 
 France on its northern frontier. He approached Marl- 
 borough's army as if with the intention of raising the siege 
 of Menin, but the memory of Ramillies was too much 
 for the courage of his soldiers. 'Everyone here,' he 
 reports to Lewis, ' is ready to doff his hat, if one even 
 mentions the name of Marlborough.' It took twenty- 
 three days before Menin fell. Dendermonde, which lay 
 to his rear, was Marlborough's real object. It was so 
 ^ ^ situated on the banks of the Scheldt, that by 
 
 Uender- , , , , 
 
 monde. letting out the waters the governor could 
 
 prevent an enemy's approach. * They must have an 
 army of ducks,' Lewis had said, * to take Dendermonde.' 
 It surrendered, however, to Marlborough. In his despatch 
 he gives the reason—* That place could never have been 
 taken but by the hand of God, which gave us seven 
 weeks without rain. The rain began the day after we 
 bad taken possession, and continued without inter- 
 mission.' Ath surrendered next, after a siege of twelve 
 days, and Marlborough would also have attempted the 
 strong fortress of Mons if the Dutch had been more 
 prompt with supplies. Thus ended the brilliant campaign 
 of 1706, all the results of which may be traced to the 
 victory of Ramillies. 
 
 The Emperor and King Charles wished to make 
 
M' 
 
 A.D. 1706. T/ie Year of Victory, 79 
 
 Marlborough governor of the country which he had thus 
 conquered. It was a post of importance, j^^^j, 
 and of considerable emolument ; the English borough pro- 
 Government would have gladly seen him Mtemwof 
 accept it. But the Dutch, and even his Netherlands, 
 friends amongst them, made so strong an opposition that 
 the plan was allowed to drop. 
 
 Section IL — Turin. 
 
 At the beginning of the year 1706 the cause of the 
 allies in Italy looked very gloomy. It seemed that 
 nothing could prevent the capture of Turin, .^^ ^^^.^^ 
 that then they must be wholly driven out of cause in 
 Italy, and that the Duke of Savoy would be ^^^^^' 
 compelled to quit the Grand Alliance, just as he had 
 formerly quitted it before the Peace of Ryswick. Great 
 efforts were therefore made to send strong support. 
 Marlborough even went to Vienna to obtain supplies and 
 reinforcements for Eugene, and his representations were 
 successful, so that Eugene was able to take the field 
 with a larger and better equipped army than before. 
 Just before his arrival in Italy the imperialists had been 
 defeated by Vendome at Calcinato. The story ran that, 
 to lull the vigilance of the opposing general, Vendome 
 had pretended to be ill, and suddenly appearing well, and 
 at the head of his army, had routed the imperiahsts. 
 Eugene's first work was to reorganise the defeated troops. 
 
 Meanwhile the French began the siege of Turin. It 
 was commenced with true French politeness. The 
 French general, by order of the king, sent gjege of 
 to offer safe passports for the princesses of Turin. 
 SaVoy, and to say that, if the duke would point out his 
 head-quarters, no bombs should be thrown there. The 
 duke sent answer that his daughters were already safe, 
 
8o 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 ^ 
 
 and that the French might throw their bombs where they 
 thought proper. Having made all preparations for resist- 
 ing the siege, the duke left his capital, thinking that the 
 presence of a court might hinder the defence, which he 
 entrusted to Daun, the father of one who was afterwards 
 a famous Austrian general in the Seven Years' War. 
 Messages were sent to inform Eugene how critical was 
 the state of Turin. He marched quickly from Tyrol 
 to its relief Fortunately for the cause of the allies the 
 battle of Ramillies had just been won, and Lewis recalled 
 Marshal Vendome from Italy, as the only French general 
 who could face the victorious Marlborough- In the place 
 of Vendome, whom he so highly valued, he sent his Royal 
 Highness the Duke of Orleans, and, as the fashion was, 
 a general to guide him, Marshal Marsin, who had 
 commanded part of the army opposed to Eugene at 
 Blenheim. The Duke of Orleans was merely ornamental. 
 Marsin's reputation did not stand high. It was said that 
 he had been made a marshal only because Madame de 
 Maintenon held a high opinion of his religious character. 
 
 Eugene's quick march took him across three rivers, 
 the Po, the largest, giving him most trouble. By a wide 
 circuit to the south he reached the Pass of 
 Stradeiia. Stradella, in a spur of the Apennines, running 
 towards the Po. This pass was very important, because 
 it formed the communication between the French and 
 their allies in the peninsula. This occupation of the 
 pass and the victory which followed it have been compared 
 to *a stab in the jugular artery, or a blow on the spinal 
 marrow.' Marching from Stradella on Turin, Eugene 
 effected a junction with the Duke of Savoy. 
 
 After surveying the ground from the heights of 
 State of Superga, whence the city and the whole 
 
 the siege. surrounding country can be seen, the two 
 generals determined on an attack. News reached them 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 The Year of Victory, 
 
 81 
 
 that the siege, which had now lasted for more than three 
 months, had reached such a point that the besiegers had 
 twice forced their way within the fortifications, and 
 twice had been repulsed ; and that the defenders had 
 fired away their last barrel of powder. The allies were 
 eager for battle. When Eugene's house steward asked 
 him where he would dine the next evening, * at Turin, at 
 Turin,' he enthusiastically answered. 
 
 The French were stronger than the allies in numbers, 
 and much stronger in position. They were behind in- 
 trenchments, to the attack of which the allies Battle of 
 had to march across a plain. But bravery s"pj"' 
 and generalship carried the day ; the French a.d. 1706. 
 were signally routed. The duke, accompanied by Eugene, 
 entered his delivered capital amid the ringing of bells 
 and every sign of enthusiasm. Eugene dined that night 
 in Turin. 
 
 This was the third victory which secured to the allies 
 important results, indeed hardly less important than Blen- 
 heim and Ramillies. The first of these was the 
 effect on the minds of the French. They were xurUi'* ° 
 taught that Marlborough was not the only |: J^J 
 general who could rout them. ' I am sorry to troops are 
 tell you,' wrote one of their own officers, * that **'*"*°"^^^***' 
 I no longer know our men — they are so changed. I will 
 not give you a detail of the disorder in which they fought 
 at Turin, and of the confusion which prevailed among 
 us, when we turned our backs on an army that, even after 
 the battle, was much inferior to ours. I will draw a 
 curtain over this disagreeable scene ; but I cannot help 
 telling you that our troops hardly think themselves safe 
 here, divided as they are by the Alps from the enemy.' 
 The same feeling was thus prevailing in the French army 
 of the South as in that of the North, and the army of the 
 South also was compelled to withdraw within the borders 
 
 M. H. G 
 
82 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 of France. The second consequence was that Savoy was 
 now secured to the cause of the Grand AlHance. The 
 
 2. The French evacuated all Piedmont except the for- 
 driven^ut of tresses. These they lost one by one— Milan 
 PkdmoTt. ° last. The Convention of Milan (March 13, 
 1707) secured North Italy for the allies. But the kingdom 
 
 3. Naples of Naples also was thus cut off from France by 
 makes peace j^^d, whilst the English fleets prevented troops 
 SpS^.^'""" being sent by sea. Naples made a separate 
 peace with the imperialists, and was never again united 
 to the monarchy of Spain. 
 
 Section III.— Barcelona and Madrid. 
 
 The successes of the Earl of Peterborough in Spain, and 
 the acceptance of King Charles in so large a portion of 
 that country, produced greater vigour on the 
 Segf""^ French side than had yet been shown. Philip 
 Barcelona. himself commanded an army whose object 
 was to recover Barcelona. Lewis sent a fleet under his 
 natural son, the Count of Toulouse, together with a 
 skilled French marshal, to help the inexperienced Philip. 
 Charles's ministers implored him to escape ; but he bravely 
 determined to remain in Barcelona, which was soon 
 blockaded by land and sea. The breaches in the fortress 
 of Monjuich, which Peterborough had taken so quickly, 
 had not been properly repaired : yet it held out for 
 twenty-three days. Meanwhile Peterborough with his 
 small forces, chiefly consisting of irregular troops, tried 
 to raise the siege, but in vain. The English fleet during 
 Peterborough's romantic enterprise had returned to 
 England. It was now back in the Mediterranean, and 
 a new commission had been sent to Peterborough, which 
 gave him the command of the fleet when he was on board 
 ship. At great risk he put out to sea in a small boat ; on 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 Tlie Year of Victory. 
 
 83 
 
 the first night no ship of the fleet was to be seen ; on the 
 second night he was more successful. He did p„„. 
 not wish the French admiral to see the whole borough 
 fleet, but rather desired to entice him to battle raise the 
 with a part, and then to bring up the rest as *'*^^*- 
 a reserve. But the Count of Toulouse was well informed, 
 and sailed back from Barcelona to Toulon. The land 
 forces soon followed the navy, and the siege was raised. 
 
 The success upon the east of Spain set in motion 
 the army under the Earl of Galway on the west. Ben\'ick, 
 who was opposing it, had forces too small to resist the 
 advance, and fell back on the north. Philip, who was 
 in the north, had hastened to Madrid ; but he Entrance 
 was obliged immediately to quit it. He was *°'° Madnd. 
 attended on his retreat by his nobles, more faithful to 
 him on account of his adversity. Shortly after Philip 
 had left Madrid, Galway with his EngUsh and Portuguese 
 troops entered the Spanish capital. 
 
 This may be considered the highest point of the 
 success of the allies. On May 11, the day on which the 
 siege of Barcelona was raised, a total eclipse The point of 
 of the sun took place. It was eagerly re- f!*5;!^* ^^' 
 
 * o ■/ cess in 
 
 marked that the sun in his glory had been the war. 
 the favourite device of Lewis XIV. In the middle of this 
 year 1706, though victory in Savoy was yet in the future, 
 the allies had been successful in the Netherlands, and 
 both upon the east and west of Spain. They were 
 fighting to keep down the power of Lewis, especially to 
 prevent him from attacking Holland, and to place the 
 Archduke Charles upon the throne of Spain. All the 
 strongholds of the Netherlands were now in their hands, 
 and the capital of the Spanish monarchy was taken by 
 Galway, who anxiously expected Charles to join him in 
 Madrid. But our account of the year as a year of victory 
 must end here. 
 
 G2 
 
84 
 
 The Age of A nne, a. d. i 706. 
 
 When the cause of Philip seemed to have reached its 
 lowest stage, a peculiar feature in the character of the 
 Spanish people, especially in that of the 
 kfyakyVr Castilians, was shown. They had not seemed 
 P^'i'P- to care for King Philip in his prosperity : he 
 
 had excited no enthusiasm amongst them— they had 
 obstructed his government by their apathy, if by nothing 
 else. Now that he was in exile they became enthusiastic 
 in his cause. Never was there such loyalty. One story 
 may serve as an illustration. A Castilian priest brought 
 him 120 pistoles from his small village, which had only 
 120 houses-^ My flock are ashamed,' said the good 
 priest with tears in his eyes, ' that they are not able to 
 send a larger sum; but they entreat your Majesty 
 to believe that in the same purse are one hundred and 
 twenty hearts faithful even to death.' 
 
 Against this feeling it was useless for the allies to 
 contend. It seems only wonderful that all did not 
 recoo-nise, as Peterborough expressly did, that Charles 
 would never be king in Castile ; for Spain was now 
 divided into parties almost as it had once been into 
 kingdoms, and the inhabitants would have gladly 
 acquiesced in a division which would have given Castile 
 to Philip and Aragon to Charles. It was an EngHshman, 
 General Stanhope, who protested that this would reduce 
 Spain to nought in the councils of Europe. 
 
 Although Madrid was thus held for him, King Charles 
 could not be persuaded to enter. He pleaded that he 
 must enter in state, and that his carriage was 
 Madrid left. ^^^ ready. ' Our William the third,' reasoned 
 General Stanhope, * entered London in a hackney coach 
 with a cloak bag behind it, and was made king not 
 many weeks after.' Between the hostility of the natives 
 and the lukewarmness or cowardice of the prince, it was 
 impossible to hold Madrid. As Charies would not come 
 
 A.D. 1707. 
 
 The Year of Victory, 
 
 85 
 
 to Madrid, Galway, no longer able to obtain supplies, left 
 
 Madrid to join the archduke and the forces 
 
 under Peterborough. Charles marched from GaiwaJ^and 
 
 Saragossa, Peterborough from Valencia : they ^^^^ ^ 
 
 joined each other, and the next day effected Guada- 
 
 a junction with Galway at Guadalaxara. 
 
 We are told how each army saw with astonishment the 
 
 smallness of the other. 
 
 As they left Madrid, Berwick's troops entered ; and 
 as the inhabitants were in favour of his cause, his army 
 was received with enthusiasm. It grew day by day 
 in numbers, whilst the forces of the allies kept wasting. 
 The crisis was past. Never again had the cause of 
 Charles such a chance in Spain as on the day when 
 Galway entered Madrid. 
 
 Moreover a new difficulty beset the allies. Not only 
 were their troops few, but their generals were many. 
 Rather than serve under Galway, his senior plurality of 
 officer, Peterborough, determined to go. A generals, 
 clause in his instructions had ordered him to proceed, if 
 he had an opportunity, to the assistance' of the Duke of 
 Savoy. He set off therefore for Italy, and was chagrined 
 to find that all the officers were glad at his departure. 
 With many qualities that might inspire those under him, 
 Peterborough had something that made him unpopular — 
 a most sarcastic and biting tongue, from which even the 
 prince was not safe. 
 
 When Peterborough was gone, however, the cause of 
 the allies did not prosper any better. Before the ad- 
 vancing troops of Berwick they retreated to Valencia, 
 where they wintered. 
 
35 The Age of Anne, a. d. 1707- 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE ^EAR OF DISASTER— 1 707. 
 
 The year 1707 was a strange contrast to that which pre- 
 ceded it. I n almost every quarter it was a year of inaction 
 or of disaster to the cause of the Grand 
 '7°7- Alliance. It was strange that the campaign 
 
 in Flanders which followed that of RamiUies was so 
 unfruitful in successes- The campaign of Turin alone 
 seemed to carry forward its results into the followmg 
 year • but the selfishness with which the Emperor acted 
 made the success in Italy almost more hurtful than 
 useful to the general cause. In Spain, divided counsels 
 had even in the latter part of the previous year, produced 
 their natural fruit in failure and retreat. They were in 
 this year to be crowned with the greatest defeat which 
 the aUies suffered during the war. In other parts of 
 Europe, also, fortune seemed to have deserted their cause. 
 When Marlborough assumed the command of the 
 army in Flanders, he expected such success as would 
 lead directly to a speedy termination of the 
 Kughand war. He had indeed many other things to 
 Charles XII. ^^ ^^^ merely to command his own army. 
 The Home Government looked to him constantly for 
 advice It was his work to keep the different members 
 of the Grand Alliance true to the cause, and zealous. 
 In the spring of this year the King of Sweden was causing 
 anxiety to the Emperor. King Charles XII., whose 
 career is described in another part of this volume, was at 
 Dresden with an army not inconsiderable in numbers, 
 but still more formidable from the bravery and reputation 
 of the soldiers. French envoys paid him frequent visits, 
 for Lewis felt that if he could win Charles to his side, he 
 
 A.D. 1707. The Year of Disaster. 
 
 Sj 
 
 might yet triumph in the war, as the Emperor would be 
 paralysed. Marlborough therefore made a hasty journey 
 to the Court of Charles, to try whether his influence could 
 counteract that of these French envoys. On the way he 
 stopped for forty-eight hours with the Elector of Hanover, 
 who advised him to try the effect of the promise of 
 pensions to the chief ministers of King Charles, and to 
 pay the first year in advance. At Dresden Marlborough 
 did not neglect this advice, but perhaps he relied more 
 on his own power of flattery, for this was his first speech 
 to the king : — 
 
 *I present to your Majesty a letter, not from the 
 chancery, but from the heart of the queen, my mistress, 
 and written with her own hand. Had not her sex 
 prevented it, she would have crossed the sea to see a 
 prince admired by the whole universe. I am in this 
 particular more happy than the queen, and I wish I could 
 serve some campaigns under so great a general as your 
 Majesty, that I might learn what I yet want to know in 
 the art of war.' 
 
 Charles was naturally pleased, and Marlborough was 
 soon convinced that the Grand Alliance had no reason to 
 fear danger in that quarter, as Charles was meditating a 
 very different design. Charles was unmoved when Marl- 
 borough spoke of Lewis, but his eyes flashed fire when he 
 spoke of the Czar. 
 
 On Marlborough's return to Flanders he was anxious 
 to begin active operations against the French ; but he was 
 thwarted by the Dutch deputies, who seemed ^^^ 
 to have received orders to that effect from ^^£^"^ 
 their own Government. The Dutch wanted a 
 cession of territory, in order to secure their border the 
 better from attack ; but as this cession would have to be 
 made at the expense of the Emperor, they anticipated 
 opposition from him, and determined to thwart the pro- 
 
88 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1707. 
 
 ii' 
 
 gress of the common cause until they could make terms 
 for themselves. Such instructions, combined with the 
 usual phlegmatic slowness of the Dutch deputies, fettered 
 Marlborough's action. The other allies also were back- 
 ward in sending their contingents. Month after month 
 passed, and the whole summer slipped away without 
 anything being done. 
 
 In the month of March was fought in Spain the battle 
 of Almanza. It was the greatest defeat which the allies 
 Battle of suffered during the war, and was inflicted by 
 M^dir' ^^^ ^^^^ ^^ Berwick. The English found 
 A.D. 1707. some consolation for their defeat in the 
 thought that their conqueror was an Englishman. Benvick 
 indeed had much of the generalship, the coolness in 
 action, and the bravery of his uncle, Marlborough. 
 
 Almanza in Valencia is a town situated in an open 
 plain. As Berwick was stronger than the allies in cavalry. 
 The posi- *^® country was better suited to him ; but 
 tions. Galway was either ignorant of this fact or 
 
 disregarded it. Anxious to expel the French from Va- 
 lencia, he advanced to the attack. Berwick had drawn 
 up his troops, with his infantry and artillery in the centre, 
 and his cavalry on the flanks. The various elements of 
 Galways forces were more mbced ; and he has been 
 especially censured for drawing up infantry in line close 
 in the rear of his cavalry. 
 
 The battle began about two in the afternoon. Lord 
 Galway, who was as brave in battle as he was cautious in 
 Total defeat council, led an attack upon the French right 
 of the allies, which, succcssful for a moment, was repulsed 
 by the second line under Berwick in person. In the 
 centre the French were at first successful, then driven 
 back : but a French officer prevented any evil result 
 from the repulse by declaring that it was a feigned retreat 
 made by the general's order. Then Berwick came up 
 
 A.D. 1707. The Year of Disaster. 
 
 89 
 
 with reinforcements, and restored the battle. The first 
 important disaster befell the allies on their right. The 
 Portuguese cavalry at the charge of the enemy turned and 
 fled, leaving bare and unprotected some infantry of their 
 own countrymen, who were cut to pieces. Some Spanish 
 cavalry also on the other wing made no resistance. The 
 English infantry in the centre, left thus exposed, were 
 attacked on both flank and in front at the same time, were 
 outnumbered and compelled to surrender. A force of 
 thirteen battalions escaped to a wood, but surrendered 
 next day to the French cavalry who surrounded them. 
 
 Two days after the fight Lord Galway wrote to Marl- 
 borough : — 
 
 * I am under deep concern to be obliged to tell your 
 lordship we were entirely defeated. Both our wings were 
 broke, and let in the enemy's horse, which surrounded our 
 foot, so that none could get off. I received a cut in the 
 
 forehead in the first charge I cannot, my lord, 
 
 but look upon the affairs of Spain as lost by this bad 
 disaster ; our foot, which was our main strength, being 
 gone, and the horse we have left chiefly Portuguese, 
 which is not good at all ... . All the generals here are 
 of opinion that we cannot continue in this kingdom.' 
 
 Lord Galway did not exaggerate the importance of 
 the defeat. The whole of the provinces of Valencia and 
 Aragon surrendered to the French. The Results of 
 town of Valencia opened its gates to them '^* defeat, 
 without any effort at resistance ; the few towns which 
 did resist were soon overpowered, and were treated with 
 severity. The Archduke Charles was reduced to the 
 single province of Catalonia, where the inhabitants were 
 still faithful to him ; but here his army was so small that 
 he could hardly have withstood an invasion, had one 
 been made. 
 
*:^^j:fiiiii!U^.-r-ujjaii:'.w«;ii* 
 
 90 Tlie Age of A nne. a. d. i 707. 
 
 Once more it seemed as if the cause of the allies was 
 hopeless in Spain. The only chance for that cause was 
 Eugene the appointment of a really able commander 
 
 should have ^j^h adequate forces. Such a commander 
 to sVa!n' was Eugene, and such forces could easily 
 have been sent by sea from North Italy to Barcelona, 
 The English and Dutch ministries used their best 
 endeavours to procure the adoption of this poUcy. But 
 the Emperor, preferring his own interests, despatched a 
 large force into Naples to secure that kingdom. 
 s^eSfrr' It was easy work. The imperialist troops 
 Naples. under Daun, the gallant defender of Turin, 
 
 were received with welcome, and the few who held out 
 for Philip were besieged and taken in Gaeta. The 
 Island of Majorca also declared for Charles. These 
 victories, however, might have been secured at any 
 
 time.. , , , 
 
 It was with difficulty that the Emperor could even be 
 brought to sanction a plan on which Marlborough 
 strongly insisted, the invasion, namely, of France in the 
 south-east, so as to produce a diversion from the war in 
 Spain. There was still hope that the Protestants might 
 rise The Enghsh fleet would co-operate. 
 
 Attempt on ^^=^- ^ "'^ » , , rr^ ^ j 4.1,^ 
 
 Toulon. The place to be attacked was Touion, and the 
 
 army was to be under the command of Eugene and the 
 Duke of Savoy. Had the former known how very unpre- 
 pared the place was, he would probably have attacked it at 
 once and taken it. The engineer whom Lewis sent down 
 to defend Toulon reported that it was not a fortress, but 
 rather a garden, being overspread with large country 
 houses, orchards, and convents. Whilst he was workmg 
 hard to get ready and defend the place, Eugene prepared 
 to attack it in due form. But his army was straitened 
 for supphes ; and, threatened by the advance of a large 
 French force, Eugene and his cousin who had com- 
 
 I 
 
iil 
 
 ! 
 
 I 
 
 II 
 
 London Lon^nunts S Co 
 
 EamTWfll-x 
 
 A. D. 1 708. T/ie Year of Disaster. 9 1 
 
 menced the attempt half-heartedly, determined to raise 
 
 the siege. 
 
 There was yet one other military disaster this year. 
 The imperialist army on the Upper Rhine, which Lewis 
 of Baden had commanded since the year of Defeat of 
 Blenheim until his death at the beginning of t.^l°ly 
 this year, was now commanded by a still Villars. 
 more incompetent general, the Margrave of Bayreuth. 
 His army had to defend the lines of StoUhofen; but 
 Villars, the French marshal, surprised him, stormed the 
 strong lines, and entirely routed the German troops. 
 Villars was thus able to break into the Palatinate, and in 
 imitation of the former French conduct he laid much of 
 it waste. Marlborough induced the Emperor after this to 
 take the command from the margrave, and give it to a 
 man of greater capacity, the Elector of Hanover, the 
 future King George of England. 
 
 Yet another calamity befell the English, but not from 
 the hand of the enemy- Sir Cloudesley Shovel was 
 brinffinff back his fleet to England from the Wreck and 
 Mediterranean, when it met with stormy cioudesiey 
 weather off the Scilly Isles. On a dark night Shovel, 
 in October, three ships, including the admiral's, *the 
 Association/ were dashed against the Gilstone Rock, and 
 only one man escaped of their crews. The admiral's 
 body was washed ashore and found by some fishermen, 
 who plundered it, and buried it in the sand. His large 
 emerald ring, however, was recognised, and, on the fisher- 
 men confessing, his body was taken up, and received a 
 grand funeral in Westminster Abbey. 
 
 At the end of this year the country was sick of the war, 
 and would have welcomed a peace. During the rest of 
 the war this feeling grew, nor did any military glory 
 again diminish it. 
 
92 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1708. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 LATER FIGHTING IN THE LOW COUNTRIES. 
 
 Wm 
 
 Section I. — Oudenarde and Lille, 
 
 The discontent felt in England against the war, and the 
 fact that the bonds which held the alliance together 
 Need for Seemed to be growing loose, convinced 
 a blow. Marlborough that this year (1708) a blow 
 
 must be struck. He reports that the burgomaster of 
 Amsterdam, who had hitherto been ii\ favour of the war, 
 had warned him that the Dutch were turning towards 
 the idea of making for themselves a separate peace. 
 Moreover, the inhabitants of Brabant, who had welcomed 
 the success of the allies after Ramillies, and who might 
 have been still warm in their favour if Marlborough had 
 been permitted to accept the government of the country, 
 which Charles had offered, and still continued to offer, 
 were becoming dissatisfied. The temporary government 
 was chiefly in the hands of Dutch commissioners, who 
 were by no means conciliatory, as Marlborough would 
 have been. The Dutch boasted that at the peace they 
 would keep the country; and as they were Protestants 
 and the inhabitants staunch Catholics, the boast was 
 very unpalatable to the latter. This feeling was known 
 to the French, whom the inaction of the previous year 
 also put in good heart. They determined now to make 
 Brabant ^^ effort to win the country back. Bruges 
 
 inclining to and Ghent opened their gates to French 
 troops. There was disaffection among the 
 soldiers at Antwerp ; but Marlborough, having received 
 information of it, was able to prevent any outbreak. 
 
 The next place which the French attempted to secure 
 was Oudenarde, a strong fortress on the Scheldt. It was 
 
 A.D. 1708. Later Fighting in the Low Countries, 93 
 
 important to them on account of its position, standing 
 between Brabant and their own frontier. The French 
 army was nominally commanded by a royal gj^ ^ ^^f 
 prince, the Duke of Burgundy ; but, as the Oudenarde. 
 fashion was with French armies, a general of greater 
 skill was sent with him, whose duty it was to guide him 
 and make up by his skill for the prince's inexperience. 
 This was the Duke of Vendome. But for this arrange- 
 ment to work well it is absolutely necessary that the 
 prince and his general should be on friendly terms, or 
 at any rate have a mutual understanding. The feeling 
 between the Dukes of Burgundy and Vend6me was 
 strong repugnance, if not actual animosity. The Duke 
 of Burgundy was a devout Catholic, with the manners of 
 royalty, but lacking military skill. The Duke of Vendome 
 was an infidel, dirty in his habits, and lazy, but with 
 genius as a general. A kingdom divided against itself 
 will not stand. An army in the direction of which there 
 is discord so apparent cannot succeed. 
 
 Marlborough's army was not so numerous as that of 
 the French duke's ; but he was destined to receive one 
 auxiliary worth a host. As the war in Italy 
 was finished Eugene was free, and it was ^n^^Marl- 
 arranged that he should join Marlborough at °°'"°"s^- 
 the head of a body of imperialist troops. There were 
 however, the usual delays in starting : and though Marl- 
 borough wrote to hasten him, it was evident that his 
 army could not reach Marlborough in time. Scenting 
 the battle from afar, Eugene left first his infantry behind, 
 then his cavalry, and arrived in Marlborough's camp 
 attended only by his personal suite. * My Aen will be 
 encouraged,' said Marlborough, * by the presence of so 
 distinguished a commander.' 
 
 The two generals were agreed as to their plans. It 
 was determined to march between France and the French 
 
 
94 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1708. 
 
 "Die :U.I:.] 
 
 army, so that, in case of defeat, the French could not 
 retreat to their own territory. On the approach of the 
 Battle of aUies, the siege of Oudenarde was raised, the 
 Oudenarde, French marching northwards. The French, 
 a^d!" 1708. their faces turned towards Paris, occupied a 
 strong position, defended by some rising ground. The 
 aUies moved to the attack at three in the afternoon of 
 July 11,1708, greatly to the surprise of the French 
 generals, for the allied army had just marched fifteen 
 
 miles. 
 
 Before Marlborough had even got all his army into 
 position, he ordered his cavalry to charge, so that if the 
 Battle enemy had any thought of retiring without a 
 
 beginl battle it was too late. In this first charge 
 
 the Electoral Prince of Hanover, afterwards George II., 
 distinguished himself. The right of the allied army was 
 assigned to Eugene, out of compliment to whom Marl- 
 borough made this wing very strong, and placed the 
 English troops in it. He himself commanded the centre, 
 in which no English were fightmg, but various corps of the 
 other nations of the Grand Alliance. At the first assault 
 the allied left was broken not long after it had crossed the 
 Scheldt. The enemy, thinking that they were winning, 
 pressed forward to drive the allies back into the river. 
 An obstinate fight ensued, hand to hand, bayonet to 
 bayonet. Indeed a great deal of the battle was of this 
 nature ; it was remarked that artillery was hardly em- 
 ployed at all, the fighting being at too close range. 
 
 As the French right thus pressed foru'ard, Marlborough 
 saw an opportunity of cutting it off, and he sent a very 
 strong force under the old Dutch general. Marshal Over- 
 kirk, who had fought in William's battles, and in many 
 another. He was now in his last field, for he died this 
 year. The service was well carried out, and the heights 
 behind the French right were occupied. As night came 
 
 A.D. 1708. Later Fighting in the Low Countries, 95 
 
 on, Overkirk's men on the allied left and Eugene's men, 
 who had been working steadily forward on the right, 
 almost met. They had even fired some shots into each 
 other's ranks, before the mistake was discovered by the 
 officers. The order was given to cease firing, and through 
 the gap that was still open many of the French escaped, 
 but many more were taken prisoners. The number of 
 slain in the battle was not very great The Chevalier 
 St. George fought on the side of the French. 
 
 The Duke of Vendome, it is said, wished to fight 
 again the next day, but the Duke of Burgundy and his 
 friends positively refused. * We must then retreat,' said 
 Vendome, angrily; 'and I know,' he added, looking at 
 Burgundy, * that you have long wished to do so.' 
 
 A few days after the fight Eugene's army came up, 
 but as the Duke of Berwick, who had been watching it 
 and marching parallel with it, now joined the main body 
 of the French, no real difference was made in the pro- 
 portion of the armies. 
 
 After a victory the important question is — what use 
 shall be made of it ? Eugene wished to attack the strong 
 fortress of Lille on the French frontier, sequeito 
 Marlborough proposed to disregard it, and ^a"ie. 
 march upon Paris. In this project he would have received 
 the support of the Home Government ; but Eugene con- 
 sidered it dangerous to leave such, strong enemies in the 
 rear, and the Dutch deputies were aghast at the proposal. 
 The siege of Lille was looked upon with great interest. 
 In all other quarters the war flagged, whilst men's at- 
 tention was turned upon this important siege of 
 contest. The fortification of Lille was con- Li"e. 
 sidered a masterpiece of Vauban. Boufflers, one of the 
 ablest of French marshals, was defending it. It was 
 known that King Lewis was determined to strain every 
 effort rather than let Lille be lost. On the other hand 
 
g6 
 
 TJie Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1708. 
 
 A. D. 1 709. L ater Fighting in tJu L ow Countries. 97 
 
 PI III 'H 
 
 'i! 1 
 
 ■it 
 
 !■ 
 
 the allied generals were equally determined to take the 
 town. The convoy which brought up the siege train, the 
 heavy artillery and the supplies, was said to have been 
 thirteen miles in length. Eugene commanded the be- 
 sieging, Marlborough the covering army, opposed to 
 Berwick and Vendome. The regulations which the allied 
 generals jointly drew up for those who were to serve in 
 the trenches are still considered a valuable lesson for the 
 young soldier. Prodigies of valour were performed by 
 the defenders. When powder failed, a body of French 
 soldiers marched through the enemy's lines, each carrying 
 forty pounds of gunpowder. Through the leader speaking 
 Dutch, many succeeded in passing the sentinels ; but a 
 casual remark in French from an officer betrayed the 
 rear. At another time a French captain took news into 
 the city, swimming through the allied lines down the 
 river Dyle on which Lille is, with his letter in his mouth, 
 and escaping the notice of the sentinels by swimming under 
 water. He returned to the French camp in the same way. 
 
 The chief trouble of the besiegers was to obtain sup- 
 plies. On one important convoy bringing provisions from 
 Skirmish at Ostend it seemed as if the whole siege would 
 Wynendaie. tum to Eugenc's camp. The French there- 
 fore sent an army to attack it ; Marlborough detached 
 General Webb for its defence. The French came upon 
 Webb in the wood of Wynendaie, but were beaten back, 
 and the provisions reached Eugene safely. This affair 
 was considered of importance,, because Webb, as a Tory, 
 was opposed to Marlborough in politics, and either on 
 that account, or by mistake, Marlborough assigned the 
 glory of the skirmish to another general. In the time of 
 Marlborough's unpopularity afterwards, the Tory House 
 of Commons passed a vote of thanks to General Webb 
 for the victory at Wynendaie. 
 
 As a last resource to prevent supplies reaching Eugene 
 
 the French opened the sluices, and laid the country under 
 water. Whereupon the allies built large flat-bottomed 
 boats, and brought the supplies by water. 
 
 After sixty days of gallant defence, Marshal Boufflers 
 was obliged to capitulate. It was even said that King 
 Lewis wrote that he should not push matters surrender 
 to extremity, but spare the lives of those who ^^ Liiie. 
 had fought so well. Eugene, in admiration of the brave 
 defence, allowed Boufflers to name his own terms of 
 capitulation. Lille was not surrendered until all its 
 powder had been fired away, and the garrison had been 
 for sonlfe time living on horse-flesh. 
 
 Section 11. — Negotiations. 
 
 The winter after Oudenarde and the taking of Lille 
 was a terrible time for France. When the spring arrived 
 the country was in a condition of absolute suteof 
 exhaustion. The efforts, which had been France, 
 required after such defeats as Blenheim, Ramillies, and 
 Turin, and by the variety of points on which the country 
 was open to the attacks of the allies, had emptied the 
 treasury, and increased to an enormous extent the pubhc 
 debt, had robbed the fields of their cultivators, and caused 
 them to be left untilled. Bankruptcy and famine stared 
 France in the face. There was no money to pay the 
 soldiers ; the taxes were unfruitful ; no one seemed to 
 have money to lend. The only quarter whence com 
 could be imported was the Levant ; but English cruisers 
 swarmed in the Mediterranean, and intercepted the corn 
 ships. There was nothing for the people to eat but black 
 bread; even the fine ladies at Versailles lived on oat- 
 cakes. The winter was one of especial severity. It was 
 terribly cold in England, where the Thames was frozen 
 M.H. H 
 
98 
 
 The Age of Anne, a.d. 1709. 
 
 oyer for weeks, but its effects were more terrible in 
 France, for there they were starvation. 
 
 Lewis XIV., who claimed to be the father of his people, 
 was touched with their distress, and humbled himself to 
 ^ . apply for peace. He sent an ambassador to 
 
 Lewis pro- ^^ j r 
 
 poses terns. Holland with proposals very advantageous to 
 the allies. He proposed that his grandson should sur- 
 render all the Spanish dominions, except Naples and 
 Sicily, which were to be made into a separate kingdom 
 
 for him. 
 
 Marlborough was appointed English plenipotentiary, 
 together with Lord Townshend, an honest but Hot very 
 The terms of ^^^^ "^^"' ^^^° °" ^^^ accession of Georgc I. 
 the^aiiiS.'° became the Whig Prime-Minister. The 
 English insisted on the cession of the whole Spanish 
 monarchy, on the acknowledgment of the queen and the 
 Protestant succession, on the banishment of the pretender, 
 and the demoMtion of the works at Dunkirk. To these 
 the various allies added other claims, each for their own 
 advantage, at the expense of France. The most im- 
 portant was the Dutch claim for a barrier or chain of 
 strong fortresses to secure them from attack. As to the 
 particular fortresses claimed Marlborough thought the 
 Dutch were asking too much. 
 
 When the terms were made known in Versailles the 
 scene at the cabinet is described as most melancholy. 
 The princes of the blood royal even shed 
 tSc?!'^ tears on the condition of France ; but it was 
 determined to proceed with the negotiations. M. de Torcy 
 himself, the minister for foreign affairs, was sent to the 
 Hao-ue to see whether he could procure easier 
 Conference ^^^^ ^^ ^^^ described several interviews 
 Hague. ^^^^^ he had with Marlborough, to whom he 
 
 was empowered to offer a large bribe. But the French 
 minister himself tells us that Marlborough would nothsten 
 
 A. D. 1709. Later Fighting in tlie Low Countries. 99 
 
 to the disgraceful offer. The allies adhered to their pro- 
 posals, adding to rather than abating from them. 
 
 The conditions with which Torcy returned to Versailles 
 were harder than before : that the whole Spanish mon- 
 archy should be ceded to the Archduke intolerable 
 Charles, and that the Dutch should have all proposal. 
 the frontier towns for which they asked. It was known 
 that Philip would not quietly surrender his hold of Spain, 
 where he had won the love of the Castilians. ' God had 
 placed him on the Spanish throne,' he said, *and he 
 would maintain himself there with the last drop of his 
 blood.* A clause was therefore added, saying that, un- 
 less Spain and Sicily were surrendered within two months, 
 King Lewis was to join the allies in driving his own 
 grandson from his throne. However crushed France 
 was, these terms were intolerable. However much king 
 and people might long for peace, it was not to be bought 
 thus. Madame de Maintenon indeed wanted Lewis to 
 accept this condition, but another cabinet meeting was 
 held, at which bolder counsels were heard. * If 1 must 
 continue the war,' said Lewis with a spirit 
 that brings back his earlier days, * I will con- thrpeVk, 
 tend against my enemies rather than against ^^^ '^°^* 
 my own family.' He made an appeal to his people to 
 meet the emergency, sending a circular to all the governors 
 of provinces, intending that its contents should be made 
 public. He spoke of his own desire for peace and his 
 efforts to secure it : he was prepared, he said, to make 
 humiliating sacrifices, but the more he showed himself 
 disposed towards them, the more did the allies rise in 
 their demands ; they seemed determined to open to 
 themselves avenues by which they might penetrate into 
 the heart of France ; even if he had consented to all 
 their conditions it would not have procured peace. 
 * Seeing,' he continued, 'that our enemies in their 
 
 II 2 
 
 1 
 
100 
 
 TJie Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1709. 
 
 A. D. 1 709. L ater Fighting in tJte Low Countries. 1 o I 
 
 ;- < 
 
 pretence to negotiate are palpably insincere, we have 
 only to consider how to defend ourselves, and show 
 them that France united can resist the united powers of 
 Europe in their attempts, by fair means or by foul, to 
 ruin her. All the ordinary sources of revenue are ex- 
 hausted. I come before you for your counsel and assist- 
 ance, at a time when our very safety as a nation is at 
 stake : let us show our enemies that we are still not sunk 
 so low but that we can force upon them such a peace as 
 shall consist with our honour and with the good of Europe.' 
 Marlborough and the allies did not expect an answer 
 such as this appeal produced, or such a result to their 
 The answer intolerable and humiliating demands. The 
 to it. French were touched by these words from 
 
 one whom they had regarded as almost superhuman. 
 Poorly clad and half-starved recruits flocked to the 
 standards, but there was a new spirit in their eyes. A 
 war which had been the French king's war became the 
 French people's, and a larger army was set on foot than 
 ever during the war before. 
 
 Section III. — Malplaquet. 
 
 Marlborough, who knew the effort that France was 
 making, and the importance which on that account at- 
 tached to the approaching campaign, pressed 
 upon the English Government the necessity 
 of strengthening his army. He used his best endeavours 
 also to obtain more troops from the other nations of the 
 confederacy. He knew well the mihtary maxim, that in 
 a desperate struggle, victory will fall to that side which 
 can bring up reserves when its enemy no longer can. 
 Marlborough succeeded in persuading the home Govern- 
 ment to send some extra troops, and not to recall certain 
 
 Prepara- 
 tions. 
 
 regiments from Antwerp : the Dutch also sent 4,000 
 German troops who were in their pay. But the number 
 of men under arms was already very large, larger than 
 ever before, and reaching more nearly to the size of modem 
 armies. Those with the French standards were about as 
 numerous as those in the allied army. There were about 
 1 10,000 men in each. But the French were badly supplied : 
 the distress in France showed itself in the army in the 
 scarcity of bread. If a detachment had to march, it was 
 said, it could only have a full breakfast by diminishing the 
 breakfast of the troops that were to halt. 
 
 The command of the French army was now given to 
 Villars, the only French marshal who had not as yet been 
 defeated in the war. The soldiers believed vniars and 
 in his luck, which it was hoped would not now Boufflers. 
 desert him. Boufflers, who had won himself glory by his 
 brave defence of Lille, offered, although senior to Villars, 
 to serve under him : and this noble example, part as it 
 were of the wave of enthusiasm which was sweeping over 
 France, did much to kindle the ardour of the soldiers, 
 who, mostly consisting of raw levies, were opposed to the 
 veterans under Marlborough and Eugene. Villars was 
 the able general who had shown clemency to the Cami- 
 sards. He was much addicted to boasting on assuming 
 command. The first thing that he did was to announce 
 that his army was much larger than it really was ; the 
 second was to give a ball. 
 
 The plan of campaign which the allied generals set 
 before them was a continuance of that which had made the 
 siege of Lille a necessity. It was to force their pj^ ^^ cara- 
 way into France, leaving no stronghold behind. p^«"- 
 The only formidable fortresses which stood between were 
 Tournai, Mons, and Valenciennes. They would also 
 have to fight the army of Villars, whose business was 
 likewise twofold — to prevent the capture of these towns, 
 
 f 
 
102 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 PuT>. 1709. 
 
 Toumai. 
 
 and to prevent the army of the allies from penetrating 
 across the frontier. With this latter object he began to 
 make strong works behind the rivers Scarpe, Scheldt, and 
 Trouille. 
 
 Marlborough made an advance, as if to attack the 
 army of Villars, who thereupon hastily withdrew troops 
 from Tournai to strengthen his forces. Then 
 by a night-march the allied troops quickly 
 invested Tournai thus weakened. The place was as 
 bravely defended as it was strongly fortified, and the 
 citadel was especially strong. Vauban's skill had been 
 employed on all these towns along the French frontier, 
 and Toumai was considered his masterpiece. The town 
 was taken in a month ; the remains of the garrison then 
 retired into the citadel, which resisted for five more 
 weeks. The terrors of the siege were increased by the 
 fact that in none of the other sieges were mines so much 
 employed by the besieged. Just when a breach was 
 made in the walls, and the allies were advancing towards 
 it, a mine would be sprung and 300 soldiers blown into 
 the air. Or when a party of the besiegers had discovered 
 a mine, and were congratulating themselves on the dis- 
 covery, they were blown up by the explosion of another 
 mine beneath it. On September 3, however, the garrison 
 surrendered, and Marlborough in consideration of their 
 bravery let the defenders march out with the honours of 
 war. 
 
 The next object of attack was Mons ; but to invest this 
 it was necessary to break through some part of the French 
 lines, and to cross the river Haine. On the 
 night of the surrender, an advance guard was 
 sent to seize St. Ghislain, if possible ; but it was too strong 
 for them. A second and stronger force under the Prince 
 of Hesse pushed further on, and crossed the river above 
 the town of Mons ; and then finding a gap between the 
 
 Mons. 
 
 A.D. 1709. Later Fighting in the Low Countries, loy 
 
 town and the lines of the French behind the Trouille, 
 which joins the Haine just below Mons, the prince 
 advanced, and invested Mons on the southern side. 
 This movement, which succeeded almost without opposi- 
 tion, was of great service. It made an opening through 
 the French lines, and placed the allies between Mons 
 and France. If Villars wished to stop the siege of the 
 town, his only chance was by risking a battle. He ad- 
 vanced therefore towards Mons from the south, and took 
 up a strong position at Malplaquet. The allied generals 
 were, however, as ready as he was for a battle. They 
 had followed close upon the heels of Hesse, and on Sep- 
 tember 9 held a council of war. The Dutch deputies 
 were of course opposed to fighting. Marlborough was 
 for an immediate attack before the enemy could intrench 
 himself ; but Eugene, who also wished to fight, was yet 
 willing to delay, until more battalions which were expected 
 from before Tournai should come up. This, as a middle 
 course was adopted, but there can be no doubt that Marl- 
 borough was right. The stubborn resistance that the 
 French made two days later was greatly assisted by 
 the intrenchments which they had thrown up ; and the 
 right policy would have been to attack at once or not 
 
 at all. 
 
 The ground round Malplaquet was very thickly 
 wooded. It was originally part of a large forest, which 
 in many places had yielded to cultivation. Description 
 To the north, the direction in which Mons of ground 
 lay, there were two woods, Laniere and Taisniere, and 
 between them a glade or open space, which was called 
 the Troupe of Aulnoit. At the southern end of this glade 
 Villars intrenched himself: he had used the two days 
 well. When the English soldiers advanced, they mur- 
 mured—* So we have still to fight against moles.' Villars 
 had also occupied the woods. 
 
 J 
 
104 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A<D. 1709. 
 
 The battle that followed was terribly bloody. It was 
 won, not by strategy, but by downright hard fighting. 
 Battle of Each wing of the alHes was once repulsed, 
 ^ptember'' ^he right had to fight its way through the 
 ii,A.D. 1709. wood of Taisniere. The left was under the 
 command of the Prince of Orange ; and when, after most 
 terrible slaughter, it was at length driven back, Marl- 
 borough told the prince that this attack was only intended 
 to be a feint. It is uncertain whether this was intended 
 as a consolation to the prince for his repulse, or was 
 really a part of Marlborough's plan. Prince Eugene was 
 wounded in the battle, being shot behind the ear ; but 
 when his officers begged him to retire and have the wound 
 dressed, he said ' there would be time enough for that in 
 the evening, if he survived.' On the other side Villars 
 was wounded more seriously, but he also showed the 
 same spirit. He ordered a chair to be brought, that he 
 might continue to direct the battle, but he fainted in it, 
 and was removed from the scene. Boufflers, on whom 
 the command devolved, found that after four hours' hard 
 fighting his centre was broken, and the intrenchments 
 carried. The French, however, were able to retreat in 
 good order from the field. The loss of the allies in thus 
 dislodging the French amounted to about 20,000 men, or 
 nearly one-fifth of the force that they brought into the 
 field. The French, who fought behind intrenchments, 
 lost a little more than half that number. These two facts, 
 the excellent retreat and the loss of the allies, made Mal- 
 plaquet a very different defeat for the French from 
 Blenheim, Ramillies, or Oudenarde. Lewis's circular had 
 borne good fruit, and there was truth in Villars' boast : 
 * If God vouchsafe that we should lose such another 
 battle, your majesty could count your enemies destroyed.' 
 Some such feeling may have influenced also the mind of 
 Marlborough, as well as the loss of his old friends and 
 
 A.D. 1709. Later Campaigns in Spain, 
 
 105 
 
 comrades. He is said to have been unusually distressed 
 after this battle. He became seriously ill, and a report, 
 afterwards expressed in a triumphant song, was spread 
 amongst the French that he was dead. 
 
 But the victory remained with the allies. The siege 
 of Mons was not raised. That fortress surrendered on 
 October 26 ; and the allies went into winter quarters. 
 Marlborough recovered from his fever ; but had he died 
 then, he had, perhaps, been happier in the opportunity of 
 his death. His last great field was fought, his last great 
 victory won. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 LATER CAMPAIGNS IN SPAIN. 
 
 Section L—The Three Years that followed Almanza, 
 
 The battle of Almanza was a singularly decisive battle, 
 and its effects were long felt. Certainly for three years 
 the allies remained on the defensive, and Effects of 
 languid campaigns were the result of that Almanza. 
 defeat. Lord Gal way, the defeated English general, was 
 recalled from his post, and appointed to the command of 
 the English auxiliary troops in Portugal. In his place, 
 as the Emperor could not be persuaded to send Prince 
 Eugene, an English and a German general were appointed. 
 Of these two. Stanhope, the Englishman, 
 was the abler. As minister at the Court of S'^*^°p«- 
 Charles he had obtained an intimate acquaintance with 
 the state of affairs in Spain. As a general we find him 
 usually in favour of bold plans, and brave in their execu- 
 tion. Without military genius he seems to have had 
 respectable talents for war : in later times he occupied 
 
io6 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1709. 
 
 >i 
 
 Minorca. 
 
 no mean position as Prime-Minister, in the reign of 
 George I. Staremberg, his German colleague, was a 
 methodical general, very slow and cautious in his plans, 
 who, without a spark of genius for war, had tried, but in 
 vain, to make up for the deficiency by study. 
 
 Unsuccessful on the mainland, the allied generals 
 were more successful in the Islands of the Mediterranean. 
 Sardinia declared for Charles almost imme- 
 diately upon the appearance of the English 
 fleet before it. A more important conquest was that of 
 Minorca. Every winter the English fleet had been 
 obliged to return to England for the winter. On this ac- 
 count the English Government pressed upon the attention 
 of their commanders, that they should endeavour to 
 secure some port in the Mediterranean, so as to prevent 
 the necessity for this return. As the attempts on Toulon 
 had hitherto failed, it was suggested that Port Mahon, 
 the harbour of Minorca, considered the best harbour in 
 that part of the sea, would do equally well. Marlborough 
 had strongly advised Stanhope to make an attempt to 
 secure this harbour. *■ I conjure you, if possible, to take 
 Port Mahon.' 
 
 Stanhope found opposition amongst the naval men 
 to this project, for it was known that Port Mahon was 
 Port Mahon Strongly defended. He therefore got together 
 taken. transports, embarked his troops, and then 
 
 sent word to the navy that he was going. The men-of- 
 war soon followed. His artillery consisted of ships' guns 
 and mortars ; his force amounted to 2,600, including 
 marines. On account of the rocky and steep nature of 
 the coast, it took him twelve days to land his cannon, 
 and get it into position ; but so vigorous then was his 
 attack, that within one day he had effected a breach, and 
 made an entry into the outer works, whilst within four 
 days the place had surrendered. Stanhope thought so 
 
 A.D. 1709. Later Campaigns in Spain. 
 
 107 
 
 highly of the harbour which he had thus captured, that 
 he filled it only with English troops, and advised the 
 English Government not to surrender it to the Archduke 
 Charles, but to hold it as security against the large sums 
 of money which he owed them. Charles did not like the 
 plan, but made a virtue of necessity. 
 
 Meanwhile, Berwick had been succeeded as com- 
 mander-in-chief of the French forces in Spain by the Duke 
 of Orleans, an ambitious and bad man, whom jy^^ ^ 
 we have already seen at the siege of Turin. Orleans. 
 He was nephew of King Lewis, after his death and during 
 the minority of his successor, Regent of France, and an- 
 cestor of the House of Orleans, which has given a king to 
 France during this century. From him. Stanhope, on 
 returning from Minorca, received a proposal, which the 
 Duke of Orleans suggested might be made the basis of an 
 arrangement that would finish the war. He proposed that 
 the aUies should withdraw Charles — the French, Philip — 
 because neither party would consent to the candidate of 
 the other reigning as King of Spain ; that both parties 
 should then accept in that capacity him, the Duke of 
 Orleans. Stanhope answered that he could not betray 
 Charles, but suggested that it might be possible to make 
 an mdependent kingdom for the duke out of Navarre 
 and Languedoc, part of the south of France, where the 
 Protestants had been in rebellion. 
 
 This was probably intended to keep the duke quiet, 
 at least for a time. But his correspondence with the 
 enemy was discovered and carried to King Yrtnch. with- 
 Lewis, and it was impossible that he could drawn from 
 any longer be the French general in Spain. ^*^"' 
 Indeed, in order to support his negotiations for peace, 
 Lewis had withdrawn or professed to withdraw all his 
 troops from Spain. He had a way of withdrawing with 
 one hand and giving back with the other : it was hinted 
 
 ""'^Hlll 
 
io8 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1 710. 
 
 A.D. 171a Later Campaigns in Spain, 
 
 IC9 
 
 to the men that they might desert the French for the 
 Spanish standards. But for the present Lewis did not 
 send another French general. 
 
 In the spring of the next year the army of Portugal, 
 which consisted chiefly of Portuguese troops, but con- 
 
 LaGudina. ^^^"^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ Enghsh regiments under 
 Lord Galway, fought an action on the frontier 
 between Spain and Portugal at a place called La Gudina. 
 The battle was^ indeed but a repetition of Almanza on a 
 small scale. 1 here was the same cowardice on the part 
 of the Portuguese horse, not shared in any way by their 
 infantry; the same personal courage and the same 
 military incapacity in Lord Galway ; the same stubborn 
 bravery on the part of the English troops. Fortunately, 
 the battle was on a smaller scale. Its resuUs were also 
 rendered less serious than they might have been by a 
 threatened attempt by Stanhope on Cadiz. 
 
 Section II.— The Final Campaign. 
 
 In the spring of 1710 General Stanhope succeeded in 
 obtaining from the English Government larger forces than 
 Stanhope's ^^^ yet been employed in Spain. Using 
 advance. these as arguments, he with great difficulty 
 persuaded Staremberg,his colleague, to consent to vigorous 
 action, and the Archduke Charles to make a bold stroke 
 for the crown that might be his. He even induced 
 Charles to promise that when the army was ready to 
 advance he would join it. Since Almanza the allies had 
 been confined within the single province of Catalonia, 
 which was always faithful. The attempt was now to be 
 made to extend their bounds. 
 
 The river Noguera, during some part of its course the 
 boundary between Catalonia and Aragon, falls into the 
 
 III '^' 
 
 Segre at Lerida, and is a branch of the Segre which falls 
 into the Ebro. The Spanish army — under the command 
 of Villadarias, the gallant veteran who had 5^^^,^ ^^ ^j, 
 stirred up the resistance to the allies at menara. 
 Cadiz, now drawn from retirement by his countr>^'s need 
 — was prepared to dispute the entrance of the allies into 
 Aragon. For the greater part of the months of June and 
 July there was no action of importance. Stanhope was 
 always in favour of bolder counsels, and always met with 
 resistance from Staremberg and Charles. At the end of 
 July the allies advanced, and had just crossed the river 
 Noguera, when the enemy came in sight. The others 
 were still unwilling to fight, and at about six in the even- 
 ing the Spaniards sent some squadrons of cavalry down 
 the hill as it w^ere to defy the English to an engagement. 
 A loud cry of shame broke from the English ranks. 
 Stanhope at length obtained a reluctant consent. Though 
 there was but half an hour's daylight left, he drew up his 
 cavalry in two lines and charged, himself at their head. 
 Stanhope himself engaged the general in command of the 
 Spanish cavalr>', and killed him with one blow of his 
 sword. This almost Homeric incident is portrayed on 
 the medal struck in honour of the battle. The charge 
 was wholly successful, the enemy were routed, and their 
 camp taken. Philip himself was in great danger, and 
 only escaped through the bravery of his friends. The 
 half-hour was sufficient, though Stanhope wished for 
 more time. * If we had had but two hours more of day- 
 light,' he wrote, * you may be assured that not one foot 
 soldier of their army could have escaped.' * It God had 
 granted us,' wrote one of his subalterns, * the same favour 
 Uiat He did to Joshua, to stop the sun two or three hours, 
 none of their infantry and very few of their cavalry would 
 have escaped.' The infantry of the allies was not engaged 
 at all. 
 
no 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1710. 
 
 '■if 
 
 The result of the battle of Almenara was that even 
 Charles and Staremberg consented to advance ; but one 
 Battle of month later Stanhope had almost the same 
 Saragossx difficulty to induce them to fight again. The 
 scene of the next battle was Saragossa, the ancient 
 capital of Aragon, famous in later history for its stubborn 
 resistance to the French. Stanhope managed to take 
 his army across the Ebro without any resistance, though 
 resistance then might have proved a serious obstacle. 
 The armies were separated by a deep ravine. Their 
 numbers were nearly equal, the Spanish army being 
 rather the larger, and amounting to 25,000. The battle 
 of Saragossa was fought in full view of the people of the 
 town from which it takes its name. The English and 
 allied troops had to fight without their breakfast, because 
 the convoys had miscarried, The battle began early 
 with cannonading. As seems usual in these battles in 
 Spain, there was a body of Portuguese horsemen on the 
 left of the allies, who made no resistance to the Spaniards 
 opposing them. The latter pursued them with impetuo- 
 sity, and thus gave Stanhope an opportunity of pressing 
 forward into the gap. The main body of the allies 
 fought their way across the ravine. Some of the Spanish 
 newly-levied troops ran ; but one body of veterans would 
 hardly surrender when surrounded. Cannon and stan- 
 dards fell to the conquerors. Almanza was avenged. 
 
 That night Charles occupied Saragossa, and there the 
 army rested for a short time. Charles and his German 
 The allies advisers seemed to wish to remain there ; 
 advance, but Stanhope dwelt upon his instructions that 
 
 something decisive must be done. He wished to advance 
 upon Madrid, and summon thither the allied army from 
 the other side of Spain, the army from the command of 
 which Galway had just been removed. Once more 
 Stanhope prevailed. The knowledge that the campaigns 
 
 % 
 
 IM 
 
 A.D. 1710- 
 
 Later Campaigns in Spain, 
 
 III 
 
 were fought to a great extent by means of English money 
 must have weighed with Charles. 
 
 It is characteristic of Stanhope's eagerness, that on 
 the advance to Madrid he himself commanded the van- 
 guard of light horse. There was hardly a and occupy 
 fortnight's interval between the time when i^i^drid. 
 Philip left Madrid and Charles's entry. But the difference 
 between the return of the defeated Philip and the arrival 
 of the victorious Charles was instructive. It ought to 
 have taught this lesson— the lesson repeated in our 
 own day— that these Castilians were not a people on 
 whom a king could be thrust by the will of foreigners. 
 One marvels that Charles should have sought to reign 
 over a people who so manifestly hated him. Once 
 before the allies had occupied Madrid, and the 
 archduke could not then be persuaded to go thither. 
 Perhaps it had been better had he then gone, and obtained 
 a convincing proof how unpopular he was in that city, 
 and how hopeless his cause : for the allies were received 
 in Madrid on their second visit in the same way as on 
 their first. The same affection was displayed for a 
 defeated king, which his subjects had been slow to show 
 when he was prosperous ; the same depths of seemingly 
 sluggish natures were stirred. Everyone who could leave 
 Madrid had retired with the king to Valladolid. Delicate 
 and high-born women went on foot rather than stay. 
 The streets were empty ; the shops were shut. There 
 was no demonstration of joy unless for payment ; there 
 were signs of grief on every side. ' This city is a desert/ 
 Charles angrily exclaimed, and left it. 
 
 Thus the cause of the heretics, as the allies were 
 called, was at its worst just when it seemed to be most 
 successful. They could with difficulty obtain Retreat to 
 supplies in Madrid. The enemy's light horse Toledo ; 
 cut off foraging parties. The allied army in Portugal was 
 
 «iii 
 
112 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1 710. 
 
 '■■Mil 
 
 II 
 
 111 
 
 then under a Portuguese general, for its new English 
 commander, Gal way's successor, had not yet arrived, 
 and it could not be induced to move. Notwithstanding 
 these difficulties Stanhope determined to winter in these 
 parts, with his head-quarters at Toledo. It was said 
 that as Charles left Madrid the inhabitants rang the 
 bells for joy. 
 
 The position of the allies, however, in Castile became 
 more and more untenable. Charles himself was anxious 
 then to ^^ return to his queen at Barcelona. He 
 
 Catalonia. started off with an escort of 2,000 horsemen, 
 a force which, as the aUies had before been weak in 
 cavalr>% they were ill able to spare. It was now deter- 
 mined that they should return to Catalonia ; but on 
 account of the difficulty in obtaining supplies the troops 
 were divided into three bodies, which were to march at 
 the distance of some thirty miles apart. It was hoped 
 that they would thus be able to draw supplies from a 
 wider range of country. The Catalans and Portuguese 
 marched on the right ; Staremberg with the Germans in 
 the centre ; Stanhope and his English on the left. 
 
 In most wars it is found that successful armies in- 
 crease, whilst defeated armies have a tendency to dwindle. 
 Yet since the defeat at Saragossa Philip's 
 army had grown, that of the allies had 
 dwindled. Such was the effect of Castilian 
 pride, of Spanish enthusiasm. Moreover Lewis had no 
 longer reason even to appear to withhold help from 
 Phihp. He did not send him soldiers, but he sent him a 
 general. He sent Vendome, the general who had lost 
 Oudenarde, because he was no match for Marlborough, 
 but who would win victories in Spain, for neither Stan- 
 hope nor Staremberg was a match for him. The faults 
 in Vendome's character have been noticed before ; this 
 was an occasion when, anxious for his reputation, he 
 
 VendSme 
 sent to 
 Spain. 
 
 A.D. 1 7 10. Letter Campaigns in Spain, 
 
 113 
 
 exerted himself to the utmost. The indolent marshal 
 showed vigour such as none other had shown. He was 
 with his army and on the alert before the allies marched 
 towards Valencia. When once they were retreating, he 
 marched after them at an incredible pace. 
 
 He first came upon Stanhope and the English in the 
 town of Brihuega, where they had stopped for the pur- 
 pose of baking bread. The English had no _ . , 
 
 • 1 -c r 1 A ■«. T Defeat of 
 
 notion that Vendome was so near. Never English at 
 expecting that the Spanish troops could ^^"'^"esa- 
 march so swiftly, Stanhope does not seem to have even 
 stationed the usual outposts. First some horsemen 
 showed themselves on the heights above Brihuega, which 
 is a small town with an old Moorish wall, and almost 
 surrounded by hills ; next, but on the same day, in- 
 fantry appeared. With difficulty could Stanhope send 
 an aide-de-camp to inform Staremberg of his position, 
 for Vendome's troops quickly invested the town. The 
 night was spent by Vendome in preparations for an 
 attack, while Stanhope prepared for defence. The 
 English built barricades in the street, made loopholes 
 for musketry, and passages from house to house. They 
 had no artillery, and every street was commanded by 
 Vendome's cannon. A summons to surrender was met 
 with a refusal ; but a breach was soon made in the old 
 Moorish wall. When the Spanish troops entered the 
 town there followed a street fight, the English making a 
 most stubborn resistance. When their ammunition was 
 all spent they fought with the bayonet, until, seeing that 
 further resistance was useless. Stanhope capitulated. 
 The troops became prisoners of war upon honourable 
 terms. 
 
 Meanwhile, where was Staremberg ? He had received 
 the message from Stanhope's aide-de-camp, but had ap- 
 parently delayed, until he could call in the right wing ; 
 
fl|; 
 
 114 The Age of Anne. a.d. 1710^ 
 
 when, on the morning after the siege, he came near to 
 Brihuega, he heard no firing, and therefore understood 
 that Stanhope had capitulated. The Spanish 
 vmiv?-^ army was now manifestly the stronger m 
 ciosa. numbers, but was fatigued after the severe 
 
 fighting of the previous day. Yet Vend6me was anxious 
 for a battle; Staremberg was not. To prevent the retreat 
 of the German marshal, Vend6me ordered a charge ot 
 the Royal Guards. Philip himself headed it, and, fired 
 by his presence, the Spanish cavalry upon the right en- 
 tirely routed their opponents, and captured their cannon. 
 This vving was carried too far in the pursuit, and mean- 
 while Staremberg himself, upon the German right, was 
 leading a triumphant charge, followed by another equally 
 successful on the centre. He recovered his own, and 
 captured all the Spanish cannon ; then the victorious 
 Spanish right returned from their pursuit, and the battle 
 was renewed, until night put an end to it. The battle, 
 which is usually called after the small town of Villa 
 Viciosa, may be counted as drawn. The Spanish lost 
 all their artillery, but had captured some standards. Un 
 the night after the battle, Philip's baggage had not come 
 up, and there was no bed for his majesty. ^ You shall 
 have the most glorious bed that ever monarch slept on, 
 said Vendome, as he sent for the captured standards, and 
 had them spread before him. Staremberg certainly, even 
 if the battle be counted his, was in no position to profit 
 by it. Early next morning he spiked all the cannon and 
 retreated quickly, harassed on his march almost as far as 
 Barcelona, which he entered with 7,000 men, the sorry 
 remnant of the army of the aUies. ,, ^ . ^ • 
 
 This was the last campaign in Spam. Madrid twice 
 occupied, and twice abandoned for the same 
 wilspSn. reason, the allies saw that it was impossible 
 to hold Spain for Charles as long as the feeling of the 
 
 A. D. 1 7 1 o. The Fortunes of Parties, 
 
 IIS 
 
 Spaniards remained unchanged. And when the news 
 was brought to Lewis, he also felt that no other attempt 
 would be made, that the point for which he had been 
 fighting was gained. His grandson would remain King 
 of Spain. So there was joy at Versailles, and men sang 
 before the king a song of triumph. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 THE FORTUNES OF PARTIES. 
 
 It may be doubted whether the fortunes of English parties 
 have ever had so great an effect upon the history ot 
 Europe as in the reign of Queen Anne. The English 
 development of parties in that reign is also ^vw^sand 
 important as the beginning of influences Tories, 
 which extend to our own days. It has on these accounts 
 been thought advisable to speak of them at some length, 
 and to collect their history into one chapter. It was 
 indeed at an earlier time than this reign that the two 
 great parties ranged themselves in opposite camps under 
 the names of Whigs and Tories. These parties represent 
 two different principles in the human mind. Some men 
 are more disposed to attach importance to authority, 
 some to liberty. The former will rally round a monarchy, 
 the latter round a republic. In one great earlier contest 
 in English history matters had been pushed to extremes, 
 and one principle had triumphed in the Civil War, the 
 other in the Restoration. But men had learnt a lesson 
 from the history of the seventeenth century, and there 
 were very few on either side who were not content with a 
 more moderate application of their principle. It may be 
 well to sum up the points of contrast between the two 
 
 I 2 
 
 II 
 
 
ii6 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702. 
 
 a.'d. 1702. TJu Fortunes of Parties, 
 
 117 
 
 parties at this time. Both parties were content with the 
 shape which the EngHsh constitution had assumed. 
 Thus both acquiesced in the monarchy and in government 
 by means of a Parhament. The memory of 1660 secured 
 the monarchy from attack ; the memory of the long con- 
 tests between the Stuarts and their ParUaments, con- 
 firmed by the victory of 1688, secured the privileges of 
 Parliament. The opposition between the parties was 
 therefore narrower. The Tories believed in the divine 
 origin of the monarch's authority ; the Whigs did not. 
 The Tories wished the sovereign to have greater power ; 
 the Whigs wished him to have less. According to the 
 French epigram, in a constitutional monarchy the king 
 reigns, but does not govern. The Whigs held this view 
 of "a king's duty; but the Tories would have made 
 monarchy more of a reality. 
 
 The Tories felt that the Revolution of 1688 was a 
 necessity, but one which they disliked. They would 
 have preferred not to disturb the Stuarts : 
 ofleRr and the Jacobites, as those were called 
 volution. ^^Q wished to restore the Stuarts, may 
 be regarded as the extreme section of the Tory party. 
 That revolution was the work of the Whigs, who always 
 attached to it the epithet of ' Glorious.' William was 
 their favourite king, and the representative of their ideas. 
 Yet William had a much larger share of political power 
 than is thought in the present day to He within the pro- 
 vince of the sovereign. He had a very great influence in 
 shaping the foreign policy of England. 
 
 But it was on matters connected with religion that the 
 distinction between the parties was most widely marked. 
 The Tories were the Church party : those to 
 ^ir' whom the rites and doctrines of the Estab- 
 Ushed Church were dear. They were very hostile to 
 Dissenters, and perhaps scarcely less hostile to the 
 
 Roman Catholics. The Whig party was in favour of 
 toleration : to this party the Dissenters belonged (for 
 they owed to it all the rights which they possessed), as 
 well as those Churchmen who, preferring the doctrines 
 of their own Church, yet considered other forms of 
 government and modes of worship lawful. Bishop 
 Burnet tells us that in this reign the distinction between 
 High and Low Church was first known, but, when he 
 proceeds to explain it, we see that it is almost the same 
 as the difference between Whigs and Tories. 
 
 Queen Anne was a Stuart : by nature and training 
 her inclinations were towards the Tory party. It is the 
 duty of a sovereign in this country to belong ^h^ queen's 
 to no party. Queen Anne really strove to views, 
 rise to the height of this duty, of the importance of which 
 she was fully aware. More than once she herself ex- 
 pressed it. But sometimes her incHnations were too 
 strong for her sense of duty, and whenever this was 
 the case her inclinations led her to favour the Tory 
 party. 
 
 On being called to the throne she gradually removed 
 the ministers of her predecessor who belonged to the 
 Whig party, and supplied their places with ^^^ ^^^ 
 others of her own selection. She did not ministry, 
 change the whole ministry ; for neither in '^^^' 
 William's reign, nor in the early part of Anne's, was it 
 considered necessary that all the ministers should belong 
 to one party. She was under the influence of the Marl- 
 boroughs. Whilst important places in the royal house- 
 hold and about the queen's person were given to his 
 wife, very high offices in the State were conferred on the 
 Earl of Marlborough, and it was in accordance with his 
 desire that Godolphin was appointed to the office of Lord 
 High Treasurer, which corresponded to the modern 
 position of Prime-Minister. 
 
 
 ill 
 
1 1 8 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1703. 
 
 Godolphin and Marlborough were Tories, but they 
 threw themselves heartily into the war in accordance with 
 Godolphin the plans of King William. Because it was 
 and Marl- William's policy, the war was dear to the 
 chSigl!^ Whigs. Because it was opposed to Lewis, 
 
 who was protecting the Stuarts, the Tories were but 
 lukewarm in the prosecution of it. It therefore came to 
 pass that the ministers received warmer support from 
 their opponents, the Whigs, than from their natural allies, 
 the Tories. Nor was it wonderful that under these cir- 
 cumstances a change came over their own views, and that 
 Godolphin and Marlborough gradually passed over into 
 
 the Whig camp. 
 
 A measure called the Occasional Conformity Bill may 
 be used to gauge their change. According to the Test 
 Act no one could hold office under the Crown, 
 ConfomSy or be a member of a corporation, without 
 Bi"- taking the Sacrament according to the rites 
 
 of the Church of England. It had come to be the prac- 
 tice that many who were really Dissenters qualified for 
 office by obeying the Act. They were called Occasional 
 Conformists, and were very obnoxious to the Tories and 
 High Churchmen. A zealous Tory in the House of 
 Commons brought in a Bill punishing this Occasional 
 Conformity very severely. By it anyone who had taken 
 the Sacrament according to the Test Act, and afterwards 
 attended a Dissenting place of worship, was to be pre- 
 vented from holding his appointment, and fined 100/., 
 besides 5/. a day for every day that he had discharged 
 the duties of his office after going to the conventicle. 
 This measure quickly passed through the Commons, but 
 in the House of Lords it met with sturdy resistance. 
 The Government strained every effort to overcome the 
 opposition. Even Prince George of Denmark, the 
 queen's consort, himself a Lutheran and Occasional 
 
 A. D. 1 703-5. The Fortunes of Parties, 1 1 9 
 
 Conformist, was urged to come down to the House of 
 Lords to vote for the Bill. * My heart is vid you,' he is 
 reported to have whispered to some who were voting in 
 the opposite lobby. But notwithstanding the zeal of the 
 Government, the Whig Lords so altered the Bill that the 
 Tory Commons refused to accept it A prorogation 
 stopped further dispute. 
 
 In November of the same year (1703) this measure 
 was brought forward again, but this time the support of 
 the Bill by the Government was very luke- ^^^^^^^ 
 warm. Godolphin and Marlborough were forward a 
 separating themselves from the High Tories, ^*"^°°*^ "™''' 
 and beginning to look to the Whigs for at least some 
 support. They tried to dissuade their friends from bring- 
 ing the Bill in, but in the division they voted in its favour. 
 It was defeated in the Lords. 
 
 Next year the Bill was introduced again, and some 
 members of the House of Co!r»mons, indignant that the 
 Bill which they favoured had so often been ^^^^ ^^ 
 rejected in the Upper House, proposed to forward a 
 * tack ' it to the Bill of Supply ; so that if the "-^^ '^^ 
 Lords threw out the Bill they would have the responsi- 
 biUty of cutting off the supplies of the Government It is 
 a rule of Parliament that the House of Lords 
 may not make any alteration in a Money- 
 Bill. They can reject it, but cannot amend it The 
 practice, therefore, of tacking— that is, joining another 
 Bill to a Money-Bill — would, if unscrupulously employed, 
 enable a majority in the Commons not only to defeat 
 the Lords, but to deprive them altogether of their con- 
 stitutional right of making amendments. On this ac- 
 count the practice has been made illegal. The proposal 
 to tack, however, was on this occasion rejected in the 
 Commons ; and when the Bill came before the Lords, 
 Marlborough and Godolphin gave their votes against it, 
 
 TheTackcrs. 
 
 I 
 f 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
120 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1705. 
 
 A.D. 1705. The Fortunes of Parties, 
 
 
 though neither of them spoke. In the elections of 1705 
 the ministers used their influence against the tackers. 
 * Give them no quarter/ was Marlborough's advice. The 
 result of that general election was that the Whigs ob- 
 tainetf a majority : and the Occasional Conformity Bill 
 for the present slept. 
 
 The leaders of the Whig party at this time were five 
 
 Whig peers, who were called ' the Junto.' Four of them 
 
 had been ministers of King William. The 
 
 The Junto. - . , , 
 
 Lord man of greatest emmence among them was 
 
 Somers. Lord Somcrs. There was no Englishman in 
 
 whom King WiUiam had placed such confidence, and no 
 one who had so well deserved it. The son of a Wor- 
 cester attorney, he had risen to the post of Lord High 
 Chancellor ; yet he so conducted himself that he seemed 
 born in the purple. He was remarkable for the gentle- 
 ness of his manners and the benevolence of his dispo- 
 sition. His opinions were strongly Whig ; yet he was 
 always remarkable for the moderation of his counsels. 
 His virtue and wisdom had raised up enemies against 
 him. Towards the end of King William's reign it was 
 discovered that he had lent money to a sea captain who 
 became a pirate, and was well known as Captain Kidd. 
 It was not proved that Somers knew of any evil intentions 
 on the part of the sailor. But the storm against him 
 raged so furiously that when King William made him a 
 grant of Crown lands the feeling against him was re- 
 newed, and, as the easiest way of quieting the stormj 
 Lord Somers was dismissed from office. He lived in 
 dignified retirement, watching the course of public affairs. 
 With or without office he was the leader and guide of the 
 Whig party. 
 
 Of the five members of the Junto, Charles, Earl of 
 Sunderland, son-in-law of Marlborough, was the youngest, 
 and had also the reputation of being the most violent 
 
 Whig. When the two ministers, Marlborough and Godol- 
 phin were depending more and more upon the W^higs for 
 support, the Junto stipulated that Sunderland l^^^ gun- 
 should be made a Secretary of State as the derknd. 
 price of this support, and as a security that measures 
 would not be introduced hostile to the principles of the 
 Whigs. The first ally that the Junto secured amongst 
 the ministerialists was the Duchess of Marlborough. 
 She was disappointed at the lukewarmness with which 
 the Tories had carried out the war policy. She per- 
 suaded her husband, and then both of them urged the 
 appointment of Sunderland upon the queen, who resisted 
 long and strenuously. Sunderland received another 
 office, that of ambassador at Vienna : but the pressure 
 for the original appointment was continued. Eighteen 
 months later it was made, and marks a distinct point in 
 the change of the ministry from Tory to Whig. 
 
 An influence, however, was at work which was under- 
 mining the Government. It was always said of Queen 
 Anne that it was necessary for her to be 
 under the influence of some stronger mind. "^^'^^'^ ^'"• 
 While she was Princess Anne, as well as in the early part 
 of her reign, her friend, her second self, was the Duchess 
 of Marlborough. But the favourite's temper was im- 
 perious, and she presumed upon the queen's friendship 
 for her. Her own political views had by this time 
 changed, but she could not bring the queen to alter her 
 views so readily. The queen seems to have been pre- 
 pared to discard her ancient friend, when she was pro- 
 vided with another upon whom to lean. The duchess 
 had placed about the queen's person a cousin of her own, 
 who was poor and in need. She never fancied that this 
 act would prove hurtful to her own power. But Abigail 
 Hill, the queen's waiting- woman, was a lady of quiet and 
 pleasant manners, a great contrast to her cousin, the 
 
 \ 
 
122 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1707. 
 
 A. D. 1 708. The Fortunes of Parties, 
 
 123 
 
 
 duchess. The first intimation of the decline of her 
 power that the latter received was the intimation that 
 Miss Hill had privately married Mr. Masham, a gentle- 
 man of the queen's household, and that the queen her- 
 self had been present at the marriage. 
 
 Abigail Hill, or Mrs. Masham, as she must now be 
 called, was not only a cousin of the Duchess of Marl- 
 borough, she was also upon the other side 
 Sl^qSeen's cousiu of a prominent Tory pohtician, Robert 
 favourite. Harley, whose influence with her was very 
 strong. Accordingly the new favourite of the queen used 
 all her power in favour of the Tory party, which was 
 already preferred by the queen. This was not then 
 merely a question of court intrigue, of a woman's private 
 likings or dishkings, but a matter fraught with im- 
 portant political consequences. The influence of Mrs. 
 Masham over the mind of Queen Anne led ultimately to 
 the dismissal of the Whig ministers and to the reversal 
 of their war policy. It led to the ministry of Harley and 
 Bolingbroke, and to the peace of Utrecht. Thus it came 
 to pass that ' the insolence of one waiting-woman and the 
 cunning of another ' changed the fortunes of Europe. 
 
 It must not, however, be supposed that these changes 
 followed immediately, although in the same summer in 
 which Mrs. Masham was married the queen took the 
 first step in opposition to her ministers. Without even 
 asking their opinion or telling them, she appointed two 
 bishops, men who were excellently fitted for the duties of 
 their office, but were high Tories. 
 
 But in the following year (1708), while the queen was 
 turning more and more against the guidance of her 
 Yet the ministers, she was compelled, in order to 
 
 ministry is please them, to make changes in various 
 
 made more ^ , . , , t_i ^ 
 
 Whig. offices, which were by no means agreeable to 
 
 herself While the ministry was not yet wholly Whig, 
 
 and while Robert Harley was still a Secretary of State, 
 and Henry St. John Secretary at War, a clerk in Harle/s 
 office was found guilty of treasonable correspondence 
 with the French : an unsuccessful attempt was made to 
 implicate Harley in the treason. Marlborough and 
 Godolphin represented to the queen that Harley must be 
 dismissed from office. When she refused, on the ground 
 that Harley was a good Churchman, they declined to 
 attend a meeting of the Council, and prepared even to 
 resign their offices. The queen would have found it 
 difficult to continue without the services of Marlborough ; 
 but she held the meeting of the Council, and, as was then 
 the custom, presided herself. It was on a Sunday : as 
 the queen entered the chamber there were black looks. 
 Harley, however, opened his portfolio and began busi- 
 ness. ' I do not see how we can do anything,' said one, 
 *in the absence of my Lord Treasurer and my Lord 
 General.' It was evident that the other ministers would 
 stand by Godolphin and Marlborough, not by Harley. 
 Soon afterwards Harley and St. John resigned. 
 
 During the autumn of this year the poor queen was 
 much tried by the illness of her husband, whom she 
 tenderly nursed. His illness was asthma, cabinet 
 After his death Somers was admitted to the government, 
 ministry, being appointed to the office of President of 
 the Council. It was evident now that the ministry was 
 entirely Whig. It is a rule of modern English politics 
 that all the members of a government shall belong to 
 one party, that they shall prepare their measures in 
 common, be jointly responsible for all mistakes, and, as 
 the expression runs, stand or fall together. This, which 
 seems an axiom now, was not so regarded at the begin- 
 ning of Queen Anne's reign. She herself wished to have 
 a ministry recruited from the moderate men of both parties, 
 what in modern political language is called a coalition. 
 
 : I 
 
124 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1708. 
 
 
 Her personal feelings had in this arrangement at first 
 assigned the preponderance of power to the Tory, or, as 
 she called it, the Church party. The course of events 
 had shifted this balance. For the next two years there 
 was a Cabinet entirely Whig, and this was followed by 
 another entirely Tory. King George III. tried to form 
 a government from both parties, but the experiment was 
 not attended with success. There have also been other 
 coalitions ; but all have been unable to stand, and from the 
 year 1708 homogeneous party Cabinets have been the rule 
 in England. A Cabinet is a Committee of the Privy 
 Council, in which all the chief ministers have seats. 
 Though an important element in English political life, its 
 existence is not recognised by the law. 
 
 Strange to say, it was almost exactly at the time when 
 the Whigs had secured all the seats in the Cabinet that 
 the causes which led to their ruin began to work. The 
 alienation of the queen from the Duchess of Marl- 
 borough was almost complete. It was said that at a 
 public ceremonial the duchess spilt a glass of water, as 
 if by accident, over the gown of her rival, and she was 
 not again invited to Court. The Duke of Marlborough, 
 fearful lest he also should lose the queen's 
 favour, conceived the idea of having his ap- 
 pointment as Commander-in-Chief confirmed 
 to him for life. It is quite possible, indeed, 
 that his motive was patriotic, and that he 
 may have desired the permanent appointment to secure 
 the allegiance of his country to the cause of the Grand 
 AUiance. He was warned by his friends that such an 
 appointment was contrary to the constitution : and one 
 of them, the Lord Chancellor, told him that he would not 
 put the great seal to such a patent. Marlborough per- 
 severed, and actually applied to the queen, who firmly 
 and without hesitation refused. These events ought to 
 
 Marl- 
 borough's 
 request to be 
 made Com- 
 mander-in- 
 Chief for life. 
 
 A.D. 1710. The Fortunes of Parties, 
 
 125 
 
 have made Godolphin and his ministry careful. Yet 
 their next step seemed most heedless. 
 
 A not very wise clergyman, named Dr. Sacheverell, 
 a college friend of Addison's, who, though of Low Church 
 parentage, had won himself a reputation for sachevereii's 
 extreme High doctrines, preached in London sermon, 
 before the Lord Mayor and in Derby at the assizes two 
 sermons in which he attacked the Revolution, main- 
 taining that resistance to a king was never justifiable, 
 and declaring that the Church was in danger * even in 
 her majesty's reign.' Not content with this general 
 teaching, he alluded to Godolphin under a nickname, 
 borrowed from one of Ben Jonson's plays, of 'Volpone,' 
 or * the Fox.' His sermons were published. The matter 
 was brought before the Cabinet, when its wisest members, 
 such as Somers, were in favour of letting the sermons 
 alone, or at best prosecuting the preacher in a court of 
 law ; others, however, and Godolphin most strongly, 
 were for impeachment before the House of Lords. The 
 result was that an important State trial was made out of 
 this trumpery matter. Thinking him persecuted, people 
 took the doctor's side. He was condemned indeed 
 when the impeachment came before the Lords, but his 
 punishment was almost nominal, for he was only pro- 
 hibited from preaching for three years, and his book was 
 burnt by the hangman. As the condemned clergyman 
 travelled through England, his journey was like a 
 triumph. Crowds came forth to see him and to ask his 
 blessing : he was received everywhere with enthusiasm. 
 
 Before this feeling had subsided there was 
 a general election. With the Tory sympathy 
 for Sacheverell was united a general weari- 
 ness of the war, and the result of the elec- 
 tions was the return of a powerful Tory 
 majority. The queen gladly took advantage of it to get 
 
 General 
 
 election. 
 
 Tory 
 
 majority. 
 
 Dismissal of 
 
 Whigs. 
 
I2J 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1 710. 
 
 A. D. 1 7 10. Fag-end of the War. 
 
 iiy 
 
 rid of her Whig ministers. The long services of Godol- 
 phin, and a little later the distinguished services of Marl- 
 borough, were repaid with almost ignominious dismissal. 
 The Duchess of Marlborough, who had for some time 
 been kept at a distance from Court, was dismissed from 
 her office, and had to leave her apartments in St. James' 
 Palace. She was so angry that she tore down the 
 mantel-pieces and had the brass locks removed from the 
 doors. 
 
 The queen did not wish all her former ministers to 
 resign. She pressed Somers to continue in office, for she 
 said * he had never deceived her.' Five times she gave 
 back the seals into Cowper's hands. But they stood 
 staunchly by their colleagues, and the new principle pre- 
 vailed. A new government was formed under Harley 
 and St. John. 
 
 The work of this new ministry remains to be narrated. 
 ^ . , One incidental result of the change was that 
 Conformity the Occasional Conformity Bill, which had 
 Bill passed. ^^^ ^^^^ ^j^^^ ^^Qpt, was now passed almost 
 
 without opposition. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 FAG-END OF THE WAR. 
 
 Of the two men who were now the leading advisers of 
 the queen and acknowledged chiefs of the Tory party, 
 Harley was in the higher position, though 
 Harley. Bolingbroke was really the abler man. Robert 
 
 Harley belonged to a Whig family ; his father had even 
 been put in prison on suspicion of being impHcated in 
 Monmouth's conspiracy. Entering Parliament for a 
 
 Cornish borough immediately after the Revolution, Har- 
 ley was very strongly opposed to the Tory party, which he 
 afterwards joined. In William's reign he was elected 
 Speaker of the House of Commons. When Godolphin 
 was dismissed, his place as Lord High Treasurer was, at 
 first, not filled up ; the office was put jn commission, and 
 Harley was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer, but 
 was practically Prime-Minister. Harley was neither 
 eloquent nor a man of genius, but he possessed powers 
 which have sometimes availed more than eloquence or 
 genius — the arts of a courtier. He was more at home in 
 the queen's antechambers than in either House of Par- 
 liament. He was ambitious, unscrupulous, strong in 
 worldly wisdom. 
 
 An event which nearly cost him his life had the effect 
 of increasing his popularity. A French refugee, who 
 called himself the Marquis of Guiscard, had Attack 
 made frequent proposals for descents upon his life. 
 the coast of France. Afterwards he had carried on 
 intrigues with France. He was arrested, and under 
 examination before the Council, when he suddenly seized 
 a penknife from the table and stabbed Harley with it. 
 A scuffle ensued, in which the Frenchman was mortally 
 wounded, and it was then found that Harley's wound was 
 but slight. Great sympathy was expressed for Harley, 
 and shortly afterwards the queen made him j^j^^^^ ^.^^.j 
 an earl, with the double title, Oxford and of Oxford. 
 Mortimer. She then raised him to the office of Lord 
 High Treasurer. 
 
 Henry St. John was a man of very different character. 
 In that age, famous for its wits and its literary men, he 
 could hold his own with any of them. He 
 was very intimate with the chief authors of 
 the day, especially with Pope and Swift, and the poet- 
 diplomatist, Matthew Prior. He was an accomplished 
 
 St. John. 
 
128 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1 710. 
 
 A.D. 1111. 
 
 Fag-end of the Wan 
 
 
 7 
 
 I 
 
 classical scholar, very eloquent, and renowned as an 
 elegant writer. As a politician he was distrusted, and 
 could never have kept his party together. He was bril- 
 liant rather than safe. As a writer, he was very hostile 
 to Christianity. It was nearly a year later than Har- 
 le/s promotion that St. John was elevated to 
 
 Made Lord , , , ^i 1 j 
 
 Boiing- the peerage, and he was then only made a 
 
 broke. viscount. IIls title was Viscount Boling- 
 
 broke. It is said that this inequality of rewards led to 
 ill-will between these members of the same Government. 
 It is probable that from their first acceptance of office 
 they intended to put an end to the war, but they could 
 not well publicly declare this intention ; and whilst they 
 were still feeling their way, an event occurred which 
 promised to provide them with an excellent excuse. The 
 Emperor Joseph died ; and his brother, the Archduke 
 Archduke Charles, after due formality of an election 
 Charles ^nd a delay of nearly six months, succeeded 
 
 becomes -' , • 1 
 
 Emperor. him as Empcror ; so that it now became 
 doubtful whether it would be in accordance with the views 
 of the aUies to continue a war which had been begun 
 nominally in order to give him the crown of Spain. But 
 such a feeling was gradual, not immediate. In order to 
 secure the election at Frankfort from any fear of a French 
 invasion, Eugene received orders from Vienna to with- 
 draw with all his troops from the army under Marl- 
 borough in Flanders. Villars, the French marshal, had 
 fortified his position with great care, and boasted that 
 Marl- Marlborough could not pass into France. 
 
 j^o™"^'s jjg called his lines the IS on plus ultra. 
 paign. Marlborough, however, although the allied 
 
 forces were weakened by Eugene's withdrawal, entered 
 the Non plus ultra with ease. He then laid siege to 
 Bouchain, and captured it ; but these were the only 
 military achievements of the allies during the year 
 
 1 7 1 1 . Coming events were already casting their shadows 
 
 before. 
 
 The ministers planned an expedition against Quebec, 
 and entrusted the command of it to Colonel Hill, the 
 brother of Mrs. Masham, the queen's fa- ^^p^j^i^^ 
 vourite. It was thought that if this expedi- against 
 tion was successful, it would act as a counter- Q"«*»«^ 
 poise to the great achievements of Marlborough. But 
 the fleet of transports was badly provided with supplies, 
 and had great difficulties in procuring pilots skilled in 
 the navigation of the dangerous seas at the mouth of 
 the St. Lawrence. Unfortunately it met with a violent 
 storm, and several of the ships were wrecked. The 
 result was that the expedition returned to England a 
 
 failure. 
 
 Meanwhile negotiations had been secretly opened 
 with France, as the ministers had determined on peace— 
 in concert with the allies, if the aUies prefeiTed ; if not, 
 without them— and upon terms as favourable for them- 
 selves as possible ; but the consideration of terms was 
 not to be allowed to stand in the way of peace. One 
 obstacle it was necessary to remove. The r^sg^accof 
 great general who had won four great battles Mari- 
 for the cause, who had never besieged a town ^'"•'"K*^ 
 without taking it, who had been the heart and spirit of 
 the alliance, must be sacrificed. To break the blow, the 
 queen did him the honour of writing a letter with her 
 own hand, dismissing him from all his employments. 
 The reason alleged was that an accusation had been 
 made against him, that he had taken perquisites from a 
 Jew, who had contracted to supply the army with bread, 
 and that during the ten years this allowance amounted 
 to the sum of 63,000/. There was also a charge that 
 Marlborough had deducted 2j per cent, from the pay 
 which England gave to foreign troops, and that this 
 M. //. K 
 
130 
 
 T!u Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1711. 
 
 amounted, in the ten years, to no less than 177,000/. 
 His letter of reply was very dignified. He made answer, 
 first, that the payments were quite according to prece- 
 dent, and, secondly, that he had taken the money, not 
 for his private use, but to obtain secret intelligence about 
 the enemy. There can be no doubt that this defence is 
 perfectly satisfactory, but his opiX)nents were bent on his 
 
 disgrace. 
 
 Prince Eugene hastened to England to endeavour to 
 prevent its falling away from the alliance. He was re- 
 ceived with all civihty and even cordiality, but no repre- 
 sentations that he could make could have any effect in 
 reinstating his old companion in arms. Within a year 
 Death of '^ Marlborough's disgrace, his old friend 
 Godoiphin. and colleague, Godolphin, died at his house. 
 Partly from sorrow, partly because of the unpopularity 
 into which he had now fallen, Marlborough went abroad. 
 
 The ministers, being determined to have a majority 
 in both Houses of ParHament, strained the royal pre- 
 Twelve rogative, and induced the queen to make 
 
 peers. twelve pcers. Some were eldest sons of 
 
 peers, who would have become peers in the course of 
 nature ; two were prominent lawyers ; one of them was 
 Mr. Masham. All of course were Tories. When they 
 appeared in the House, an opponent, alluding to their 
 number, asked sarcastically whether they voted separately 
 or by their foreman. 
 
 Meanwhile the Duke of Ormond was appointed to 
 
 an unpleasant post. It was difficuk enough to succeed 
 
 Marlborough as commander-in-chief, but it 
 
 Commander- must have been absolutely humiliating for 
 
 in-Chief. jjjj^ ^Q j^qI^j ^^^ office, and yet to receive 
 
 secret orders, tying his hands and bidding him do no- 
 thing. ' A general of straw,' he was called. As no one 
 likes to be a dummy, the duke must have felt it a positive 
 
 A.D. 1 71 2. Fag-end of tlie War, 131 
 
 relief when an armistice between the English and the 
 French was declared. He received orders to separate 
 the troops in the pay of England from the army of the 
 allies. But many of these troops, acting under orders 
 from their own Governments, refused to obey, and he 
 withdrew with the native English soldiers. 
 Eye-witnesses have described the indignation of Evjush 
 with which the English soldiers and officers ''"'^"p^- 
 received the orders, and the shame with which they 
 parted from their former comrades on so many fields. 
 Orniond was followed by only 12,000 soldiers. The 
 smallness of this number points to the fact that England 
 had been fighting in this war with money rather than 
 with men. The number of native British soldiers was 
 very small compared with the number of foreign mer- 
 cenaries that England paid— Hessians, Palatines, and 
 Germans of other small States, especially in the Rhine 
 valley, where a century of wars, beginning with the ter- 
 rible Thirty Years' War, had ruined their homes, and 
 implanted in their breasts the love of a military life. 
 
 Notwithstanding the departure of the English troops, 
 Eugene was still at the head of an army of 100,000 men 
 in an excellent position. His lines were 
 called the * road to Paris,' because it seemed ^"^*"*" 
 that when once he had taken Landrdcies, a town which 
 he was besieging, nothing could stop him from entering 
 France. General alarm was felt in that country, and the 
 king wrote to Marshal Villars that he trusted all to him, 
 but that if defeat should await him, he himself would 
 mass all his troops, and at their head perish or save the 
 State. 
 
 It is curious that King Lewis should have thought 
 such extreme language necessary, when the alliance was 
 breaking up, and deliverance was so near. Eugene's 
 lines were so widely extended, that if one part were 
 
 K 2 
 
132 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 /V* \j* X 7 X 2 ■ 
 
 attacked it could not quickly receive succour from an- 
 other. Villars made a feigned attack on Eugene's camp 
 Victo of before Landr^cies, and then, hurting all his 
 French at Strength upou Deuain, there won a brilliant 
 jdy^a"', A.D. victory. It is said that Eugene himself came 
 ^7"- up in time to witness, but not to stop, the 
 defeat. There can be no doubt that this battle had a 
 great influence in determining the Dutch to make peace. 
 They saw that, with the English troops, victory had de- 
 parted. Eugene was compelled to raise the siege of 
 Landrdcies, and Villars retook three towns from the 
 allies, one of them being Bouchain, the sole conquest 
 of the previous year. - " ' 
 
 "if \^ 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 PEACE OF UTRtlCrfr. 
 
 In January i/ii a messenger arrived from London at 
 
 Paris, who, calling upon Torcy, the Minister for Foreign 
 
 Affairs, began his conversation with these 
 
 Peace at j o . - -. . . - - 
 
 hand. words : * Do you wish for peace, sir t If so, 
 
 I bring you the means of procuring it.' 'It was,' says 
 Torcy in his memoirs, * like asking a dying man whether 
 he would wish to be cured.' 
 
 It is not necessary to describe in detail all the ne- 
 gotiations which had preceded and which followed this. 
 Negotia- After Ramillies and the year of victory, terms 
 ''°"Vr had been indirectly offered by the French, 
 
 (a) After "' e c^ • ^u 
 
 Ramillies. including the surrender of bpain to the 
 archduke, on condition that Philip had Naples, Sicily, 
 and Milan as a separate kingdom. Marlborough thought 
 
 — __:itm 
 
 K.p. I7II-I3. 
 
 Peace of Utrecht 
 
 m 
 
 that the offer of France was insufficient, and would not 
 allow it even to be made the basis of a conference. 
 
 In 1709, after the defeat at Oudenarde and the cap- 
 ture of Lille, the bad har\^est, and the terrible frost, the 
 position of Lewis was so much worse that ^^. ^^^ 
 he was prepared to surrender even the con- Hague, 
 dition of a monarchy for Philip. He was ready to accept 
 all the terms of the allies laid down at the Conference of 
 the Hague, except the article in which they insisted that, 
 if his grandson did not resign the Spanish Crown, he 
 should himself compel him by force of arms. 
 
 Next year, after Malplaquet,.the French king made 
 another effort. A conference was held at Gertruyden- 
 burg, a small town near the mouth of the (aaertruy- 
 Waal, which place the Dutch rulers selected denburg. 
 lest at anymore important town the envoys might incline 
 the natives towards peace. But the allies insisted on the 
 same hard condition, and this conference was as abortive 
 as that of the Hague. 
 
 But, in Januar>^ 171 1, for the first time, the proposals 
 were made from the side of the allies, and not from that 
 of France ; and as Lewis was always well 
 informed about the state of English parties, 
 he began the new negotiations with quite a different hope. 
 Terms which he would gladly have accepted in the pre- 
 vious year he would not hear of now. The English 
 ministry, thinking the allies intractable, were now ne- 
 gotiating without them, and had signed the preliminaries 
 even before Marlborough's disgrace and Ormond's ap- 
 pointment. A congress was held at Utrecht, „ 
 to which the allies at last consented to send Utrecht 
 representatives. Diplomacy was very long- ^'^^'^• 
 winded, but after many months the Peace of Utrecht was 
 signed in March 17 13. 
 
 There were several treaties made between the different 
 
 (d) Utrecht. 
 
134 
 
 TJu Age of Afine. 
 
 A.D. 1713. 
 
 belligerents, which, together, form what we call the Peace 
 of Utrecht. Charles VI., the new Emperor, held out obsti- 
 Emperor nately. He did not wish for peace, and was 
 
 iioids out. very angry with the allies, especially with the 
 English, that they were not willing to continue fighting 
 his battles. But what could he do, single-handed 1 He 
 held out for nearly one year longer, but Villars vigorously 
 turned his forces against him, and seized a town or two. 
 Then, in the following spring, the Emperor accepted the 
 peace, which he could have enjoyed earlier. 
 Rastadt, The pcace between France and the Emperor 
 
 1714- personally was called after the town Rastadt, 
 
 that between the French and the Empire after that of 
 Baden. 
 
 The Spanish monarchy — the main point in dispute — 
 together with the vast American possessions, was left in 
 The s anish ^^^ hands of Philip V. If the allies had 
 monarchy. been fighting to take it from him, they had 
 missed their object. Solemn renunciation was, however, 
 made by the King of Spain of all his claim to the French 
 Crown, at least as long as he retained the Spanish Crown. 
 Both Lewis and Philip swore that the Crowns of France 
 and of Spain should never be united. Lewis swore, ' on 
 the faith, word, and honour of a king,' that he would 
 acknowledsre Oueen Anne and the Protestant succession, 
 and that he would give no further assistance to the Pre- 
 tender, but induce him to leave France. He agreed also 
 to demolish the fortifications and to fill up the harbour of 
 Dunkirk. 
 
 Though the English seem to have regarded Dunkirk 
 as a standing menace to their commerce, and to have 
 England's eagerly desired this article, it was never car- 
 gain, ried out. England was to keep Gibraltar 
 and Minorca, but she promised that they should not be 
 a place of refuge either for Moor or Jew. England also 
 
 : 
 
 Lemdmi: Itm^manjf ^ ih. 
 
 'SAt^ifelltT 
 
A.D. 1 71 J. 
 
 Peace of Utrecht 
 
 135 
 
 "i! 1 
 
 gained from France certain ice-bound territories in North 
 America, which France did not vahie — the Hudson's Bay 
 Territory, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia. They were 
 valuable as fishing- grounds, and also for the fur-hunters ; 
 but the French reserved in the treaty the right to fish. 
 There had been, indeed, as many English as French 
 settlements in these places, and perhaps more English 
 settlers. The possession of the first two had been long 
 in dispute ; but Nova Scotia — called by the French 
 Acadia — had been formally ceded to the French in the 
 reign of Charles II. It is important to notice that, in 
 this article, England was commencing a policy of co- 
 lonial aggrandisement which brought later wars on her. 
 England further obtained from Spain the Assiento con- 
 tract, which France had before enjoyed, viz. the privilege 
 of importing 4,800 negro slaves into America witliin thirty 
 years. 
 
 In addition to these treaties there was further pro- 
 posed a treaty of commerce between England and France, 
 but the House of Commons threw it out. It shows how 
 enlightened a statesman Bolingbroke could prove him- 
 self, for it would have established free trade between 
 England and France. Neither of the nations were to tax 
 each other's manufactures, and each was to grant to the 
 other whatever privileges it conferred on the most fa- 
 voured nation. 
 
 France, it may be seen, suffered little by the treaty, 
 for she lost no territor}^, and was left with the same 
 boundaries that she had reached in the year of the 
 English Revolution. Spain lost her posses- 
 sions in Italy and in the Netherlands, of 
 which Milan, the kingdom of Naples, and the Nether- 
 lands fell to Austria, while Sicily, which was afterwards 
 exchanged for Sardinia, fell to the Duke of Savoy, who 
 was further indulged with the title of King. The Elector 
 
 Spain's loss. 
 
136 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1713. 
 
 Prussia. 
 
 of Bavaria, France's luckless ally, was reinstated in his 
 dominions, and at the same time the Elector of Hanover 
 was fully and finally recognised. 
 
 Prussia, which a month before the treaty of Utrecht 
 passed under the rule of its second king, famous in 
 history as the eccentric father of Frederick 
 the Great, secured its own recognition as a 
 kingdom by the King of France. Moreover, its territory 
 of Orange was exchanged for land that lay more con- 
 venient in Guelderland. On the death of our William III. 
 without children, his claim to Orange had passed to his 
 sister, who married the first King of Prussia. The little 
 principality of Orange was surrounded entirely by France, 
 into which it was manifestly more convenient that it 
 should now be swallowed up. Whether it belonged to a 
 king of England or a king of Prussia, the French could 
 at once overrun it with troops in case of war. 
 
 Lastly, the Dutch obtained certain towns, and had 
 the satisfaction of seeing the Netherlands in the hands of 
 Austria, a barrier between them and France. 
 It was not a very substantial result of all 
 their efforts, but, if the English would not go on fighting, 
 it was not in the power of the Dutch to obtain better 
 terms. Holland, however, learnt the futility of engaging 
 in wars like this, and henceforth pursued a policy of 
 non-interference, and her influence declined in Europe. 
 
 The Peace of Utrecht has been often criticised, and 
 generally in a sense hostile to its promoters — the English 
 ministry. It may be as well to express shortly the argu- 
 ments on both sides. 
 
 Those who supported it said that the war was becom- 
 ing a great burden upon England : that her 
 
 Argtiments . , -, , • , 
 
 for Peace of national debt was growing to sueh an enor- 
 Utrecht. mous size that posterity would not be able to 
 pay it ; that in consequence of the peculiar spirit of the 
 
 Dutch. 
 
 A.D. 1 713. 
 
 Peace of Utrecht. 
 
 m 
 
 Castilians, Spain could never be conquered nor taken 
 from Philip except at a terrible cost, and that English- 
 men who did not want the Pretender had no right to force 
 a king upon reluctant Spain ; that the terms of the treaty 
 secured Europe from the danger of a union of the Crowns 
 of France and Spain, indeed, that a similar danger was 
 more to be feared on the other side, for the Grand 
 Alliance was intended to prevent the union of the 
 Spanish Crown with that of any other first-rate power, 
 and that the Austrian claimant was now Emperor. 
 France, therefore, being humbled and threatening no 
 danger to Europe, if England continued to fight, she 
 would be fighting the battles of her allies, not her own. 
 
 To these arguments answer was made : Debt or no 
 debt, commerce flourishes. France, which has been for 
 half a century a source of danger, is now at ^,^,_, 
 our mercy. Her fortresses are broken down, against it. 
 and Marlborough has cleared his road to Paris. Let us 
 bind her now, so that she never can be dangerous again. 
 It will never be safe to have France and Spain under 
 kindred kings. The Bourbons are all of a piece, and this 
 Philip may yet succeed his grandfather. In such case 
 renunciations are valueless ; we know that France always 
 regards them as invalid. After all Marlborough's vic- 
 tories, the allies are wrong not to secure results more 
 substantial. 
 
 As the Peace of Utrecht ends the war, this is the 
 right place to ask the question — was this a just and ne- 
 cessary war } And the answer must be that ^ 
 
 Oc n c vdX con ■• 
 
 it was. We must place ourselves in the .sideratiou on 
 position of the statesmen who knew Lewis ^^^ "^'■■ 
 and his ambition, or of the people who had suffered and 
 seen others suffer from his encroachments. Even after 
 the Peace of Ryswick, there can be no doubt that he was 
 dangerous to the liberties of Europe. But as decidedly 
 
138 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1 713. 
 
 A.D. 1703. 
 
 The Union with Scotland. 
 
 139 
 
 the war should have been ended earlier. Peace ought to 
 have been made after the battle of Ramillies. The war 
 would then have lasteci four years instead of eleven, and 
 much would have been saved. It was the heartfelt mistrust 
 of Lewis that made Marlborough, Eugene, and Heinsius, 
 the Whig ministers in England, and the Dutch statesmen, 
 refuse to treat. But they could then have obtained the 
 same terms that they secured afterwards, or better. 
 From that time forward the allies were in the wrong, 
 and at each negotiation, at the Hague and at Gertruy- 
 denburg, they plunged more deeply into it. After the 
 disaster at Villa Viciosa, all claim on Spain should have 
 been surrendered. The allies asked too much, and they 
 were forced to take too little. For, that Bolingbroke and 
 Oxford granted tenns too easily, and mismanaged the 
 negotiations, there is no manner of doubt. 
 
 When peace was proclaimed in London there was a 
 srrand Te Deum in St. Paul's Cathedral, Handel's music 
 probably being played. But the Te Deum 
 raised by Lewis and his courtiers should have 
 been louder, for in the Peace of Utrecht Lewis gained 
 the most. 
 
 Te Deum. 
 
 CHAPTER XVL 
 
 THE UNION WITH SCOTLAND. 
 
 Section I. — The Union itself. 
 
 One of the most important works of Queen Anne's reign 
 was the Union with Scotland. Until that 
 attenfptsat was Carried out, Great Britain was divided 
 union. Jj^|.q ^.^^q unequal kingdoms, with the same 
 
 sovereign, but in every other respect distinct. There was 
 
 7 
 
 no real security that even the union under the same 
 sovereign would be permanent, and that under different 
 sovereigns the old hostility, perhaps even war, would not 
 arise. Statesmen had therefore long wished that the two 
 kingdoms should be fused into one. Oliver Cromwell, 
 who may be said to have anticipated the principle of 
 Parliamentary Reform, also anticipated the Union, and 
 summoned representatives from Scotland to one assembly 
 with those of England. But the Restoration overthrew 
 his arrangement, and perhaps the memory of Cromwell's 
 change caused in the times that followed a prejudice 
 against any imitation of his policy. William III. had 
 been strongly in favour of the change, but other matters 
 had occupied his time and attention. In his last mes- 
 sage to Parhament he had recommended the project of 
 Union to the members. In the tirst year of the reign of 
 Queen Anne commissioners were appointed and met. 
 But they were not in earnest about their work. It 
 was often difficult even to procure the attendance of a 
 quorum of the English commissioners, and so the matter 
 dropped. 
 
 A step of the Scottish Parliament, the passing of the 
 Act of Security, made the absolute necessity of the Union 
 evident not only to statesmen but to all xheActof 
 thinking men in England. As Queen Anne Security. 
 was childless, steps had been taken even in her prede- 
 cessor's reign to settle the devolution of the English 
 crown. In the last year of William's life the Act of 
 Settlement was passed, by which it was decided that the 
 sovereign of England must be a Protestant, and that in 
 the case of the death of Anne without heirs, the crown 
 should devolve upon the Electress Sophia, granddaughter 
 of James I., and upon her heirs who were Protestant. 
 This measure excited no enthusiasm, and yet all parties 
 in England seemed to acquiesce in it. In the Scotch 
 
140 
 
 The Age of Anne, a.d. 1704-6. 
 
 Parliament no such bill was passed, but two years later 
 the Act of Security was carried, the effect of which was 
 quite opposite. 1 1 declared that, on the death of the queen 
 without issue, the Estates (that is, the Scotch ParHament) 
 should name a successor from the Protestant descendants 
 of the House of Stuart, but not the same as should suc- 
 ceed to the crown of England, unless certain securities 
 were given for the religion, freedom, and trade of Scot- 
 land. The Government, however, instructed the queen's 
 commissioner not to touch the Act with the sceptre. It 
 did not therefore become law ; but the irritation in the 
 Scotch Parliament was so strong because of this refusal 
 that the commissioner prorogued it without obtaining any 
 subsidy. Next year (1704) the Act was passed again by 
 the Parliament. Godolphin yielded to their persistency, 
 and the measure became law. The effect, however, not 
 on his mind only, but on that of almost all Englishmen, 
 was that it was no longer safe to postpone the Union. 
 
 In the summer of 1706 commissioners met in Lon- 
 don, thirty-one from each kingdom. Lord Somers pre- 
 r, - - sided over their meetings : to his bland 
 
 Commission . i r t_ 
 
 appointed. temper and moderatmg wisdom much of the 
 success of their treating was due. Once or twice the 
 queen attended at the deliberations to encourage the 
 commissioners by her presence ; and it was evident that 
 they were animated by a different spirit from that of the 
 first year of her reign. 
 
 It is a law of physics that a larger body attracts a 
 smaller. As England was three times as large, four times 
 as populous, and probably forty times as rich 
 mSs^'o-" as Scotland, it was evident that the latter 
 posed. kingdom would have to adopt the constitu- 
 
 tion of the former. But the English commissioners were 
 prepared to treat the Scotch in a liberal spirit. The 
 doctrine that the minority must yield to the majority 
 
 ]' 
 
 A.D. 1706. T/ie Union with Scotland. 141 
 
 required that the English weights and measures and the 
 English coinage should be the standard for the United 
 Kingdom. As, however, the Scotch might lose by these 
 and similar changes, it was proposed that a sum of money 
 should be paid by the English Parliament, to which the 
 name of tli<^ Equivalent was given. Elaborate calcula- 
 tions were set on foot to fix its amount, which was ulti- 
 mately settled at 400,000/. It was to be thus employed. 
 All the debts of the kingdom of Scotland were to be paid 
 off, and for this it was estimated that 160,000/., or about 
 a year's revenue of that kingdom, would be required. 
 The shares of the Darien Company were to be bought up 
 with a second portion, and the company then dissolved. 
 A third portion was to recoup the losses caused by the 
 change in the coinage. But when the gold arrived in 
 Edinburgh, there was a riot, and the waggons that brought 
 it were near being plundered. The people regarded it as 
 a bribe. 
 
 In England there was hardly any real opposition to 
 the Union, but in Scotland there was a great deal. This 
 may have been partly due to the anger of oppositk 
 shopkeepers and citizens of Edinburgh, in- i" Scotia 
 dignant that their beautiful city should cease to be a 
 capital ; partly to that of members of Pariiament, who 
 would lose their importance when the capital went south. 
 There was also a general feeling, strongest amongst the 
 uneducated, but not confined to them, that Scotland was 
 going to be placed in subjection to England. The ancient 
 glory of their kingdom was departing. But the strongest 
 feeling was aroused on the question of their religion : 
 there was a general fear lest by union with - England, 
 Avhich had an Episcopal Church, the Presbyterian con- 
 stitution of the Scotch Church should be in danger. 
 And to this feeling a sort of echo was heard in England 
 when the High Churchmen seemed to regard it as 
 
 >osition 
 
 Scotland. 
 
142 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1706. 
 
 unworthy to ally themselves with a Presbyterian body. 
 It was determined that no change should be made in 
 either Church ; and Acts of Parliament were passed, both 
 by the Scotch and by the English Parliaments, to secure 
 that each Church should preserve its constitution and 
 its independence. There was to be one State, but two 
 Churches. 
 
 The Scotch share of the land tax was fixed at one- 
 fortieth. If taxation had been taken as the basis of 
 Re resenta- representation, the Scotch would not have 
 tion. been allowed more than thirteen representa- 
 
 tives in the House of Commons. But it was felt that this 
 number was insufficient, considering the population and 
 the ancient reputation of the northern kingdom. After 
 some negotiation the number was tixed at forty-five. Of 
 these thirty were assigned to shires, fifteen to towns. 
 Edinburgh had a member to itself. Sixty-six other 
 boroughs formed fourteen groups. No shire had more 
 than one member, nor has this system been altered by 
 later reforms. The total number of forty-five has been 
 increased to sixty, eight having been added by the great 
 Reform Bill in 1832, and seven more by the Reform Bill 
 of 1867. This number of sixty is now divided thus— 
 shires, 32 (two or three shires being divided, but still 
 having only one member for each division) ; towns, 26 
 (Glasgow having three members, Edinburgh and Dundee 
 two each) ; and two being assigned to the Universities 
 in two groups of two each. The Scotch peers and repre- 
 sentatives sat in one house. Henceforward they would 
 follow the practice of England, and sit in two. The 
 number forty-five formed one-twelfth of the enlarged 
 House of Commons of the United Kingdom. This pro- 
 portion was therefore adopted for the Upper House also. 
 Sixteen peers were to be elected as representatives for 
 each Parhament. It was decided that no more peers of 
 
 A.D. 1707. The Unimt with Scotland. 
 
 143 
 
 Union Jack. 
 
 Scotland should be made. The peers who were not 
 representatives were not allowed to sit in the Lower 
 House either for English or Scotch constituencies, and 
 an old Scotch restriction that the eldest sons of Scotch 
 peers could not be elected was retained. This latter, 
 however, was repealed in 1832. 
 
 The Scotch law and administration of justice was to 
 remain unchanged. In many important points, notably 
 in the law of marriage, there is still a wide 
 difference between the Scotch and Enghsh ^' 
 law, the former following the old Roman law. 
 
 Other matters caused less difficulty. It was easily 
 settled that the national flag should be formed by a 
 junction of the crosses of St. George and 
 St. Andrew. This was a flag which James I. 
 had tried to introduce upon succeeding to the English 
 throne, but without success. Henceforward it became 
 the flag of which both nations are proud, under the name 
 of the Union Jack. At the Union with Ireland this flag 
 underwent a further change, the red cross of St. Patrick 
 being laid upon the white cross of St. Andrew. The 
 arms of the two countries, the three lions of England 
 and the lion rampant of Scotland were to be quartered 
 according to the laws of heraldry. A new seal was to be 
 made. This United Kingdom was to receive the name 
 of Great Britain. 
 
 This scheme, which was drawn out by the commis- 
 sioners in 1706, met with much opposition in the Scotch 
 Parliament. But it was firmly maintained and eventually 
 carried in 1707. It is said that bribery was extensively 
 used, as was certainly the case at the Union with Ireland 
 nearly a century later, but this charge has been investi- 
 gated and disproved. If there was any bribery, it was 
 on a very small scale. 
 
 In spite of the opposition then made to the Union, an 
 
144 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.t). 1707. 
 
 Results. 
 
 opposition which died away only gradually in the minds 
 of Scotchmen, there has not for generations been even 
 a semblance of a wish for a repeal of the 
 Union. This cannot be said for the Union 
 with Ireland ; and if the proof of the goodness of poHtical 
 work is the way that it stands the test of time, no work of 
 the kind was ever so effectively accomplished. No act 
 of the Government of Queen Anne so much deserves the 
 honour and respect of succeeding generations, whether 
 Enghsh or Scotch. England was strengthened by having 
 a warm ally instead of a lukewarm neighbour, who might 
 prove a dangerous foe. Scotland shared in the prosperity 
 which she had often envied, acquired a large share of 
 commerce, and yet did not lose the separate features of 
 the Scottish character, or in any way smother the indi- 
 vidual glory of her historic memories. 
 
 It may be well to add a note on the difference between 
 the Union with Ireland and that with Scotland with 
 respect to the peerage. No more Scotch 
 Shh^Unlon peers were to be created, and no Scotch peer 
 with Ireland, jg permitted to sit in the House of Commons. 
 In the Irish peerage, one new peer may be created for 
 every three peerages that become extinct, and an Irish 
 peer may sit in the House of Commons, but not as 
 representative of an Irish constituency. Ireland has now 
 105 members in the House of Commons, and 28 repre- 
 sentative peers. The total number of Scotch peers is 
 now 82, of Irish, 185 ; but of these so many are also 
 peers of the United Kingdom, that only 26 Scotch and 80 
 Irish noblemen are without seats in the House of Lords. 
 In the Union with Scotland, moreover, the two national 
 Churches were kept distinct, whilst in that with Ireland 
 they were united. But in the latter case the Churches 
 were alike Protestant and Episcopalian. The injustice 
 rather consisted in the fact that the dominant Church in 
 
 A.D. 1707. Tlie Union with Scotland, 
 
 HS 
 
 Ireland was not the Church of the people, a very large 
 majority of whom were Roman Catholics. It is certainly 
 a fact that requires notice, that whilst the Scotch do not 
 desire a repeal, the Irish as a nation do. 
 
 Section IL — Attempt /or the Pretender. 
 
 The immediate unpopularity of the Union in Scotland 
 suggested to the minds of the Jacobites that an attempt 
 might be made in that country in favour of jacobite 
 the Pretender. An avowed Jacobite, Colonel "*"^k- 
 Hooke, moved about the country sounding other Jaco- 
 bites, and returned to Versailles when he had obtained 
 promises that a force of 30,000 men should rise in Scot- 
 land, if only Lewis would send a French army to form a 
 nucleus. Lewis, not unmindful of the ancient friendship 
 between Scotland and France, assented. He may have 
 known that in the present state of Scotch feeling there 
 was a good chance of success, or that at any rate a 
 diversion would be created in the war, and that possibly 
 Marlborough, certainly some of Mariborough's army, 
 would be recalled from the Netherlands. The Jacobite 
 cause had always more supporters in Scotland, especially 
 in the Highlands, than in England. The feeling of 
 loyalty was encouraged by the clan system : the Stuarts 
 were a Scotch family. 
 
 James Francis Edward, son of James II. and Mary 
 of Modena, was born in 1688, the year of the Glorious 
 Revolution. Indeed his birth may be counted ^he Old 
 one of the immediate causes of that Revolu- Pretender, 
 tion, for as long as James his father had no son, the 
 English people felt that, however tyrannous his reign 
 might be, upon his death the tyranny would be overpast ; 
 for his daughters, Mary and Anne, following the religion 
 M. H. L 
 
146 
 
 The Age of A nne. a. d. i 707. 
 
 A.D. 1707. Tlie Union with Scotland, 
 
 147 
 
 of their mother, were Protestants and members of the 
 Church of England. When this prince was bom, all 
 was changed. He would be brought up, men said, m 
 the religion of both his parents : a long Une of Roman 
 Catholic sovereigns stretched itself before the eyes of 
 their excited imaginations. King James, moreover, had 
 unwisely not taken the usual steps on the birth of an 
 heir to the throne. The high officials of State and 
 Church, whose duty it is to be present, were not invited. 
 A story, therefore, for which there is no evidence except 
 this omission, and which has long been abandoned even 
 by the strongest opponents of the House of Stuart, gained 
 credence, that this prince was no prince at all, but that 
 he had been brought into the royal bedchamber in a 
 wanmng-pan. In honour of this belief it is recorded 
 that on his birthday in each year, whilst Jacobites wore 
 white roses in their button-holes, staunch Whigs wore 
 little farthing wai-ming-pans. ^ 
 
 This young prince it was whom Lewis XIV. had 
 promised the exiled James upon his death-bed that he 
 would recognise as King of England : which promise 
 had drawn this long war upon his head. At St. Ger- 
 main's, the palace which Lewis had granted to James and 
 to his 'family, he had been brought up as a CathoHc 
 prince, and amidst the despotic ideas of the Court of 
 Lewis. He was not trained to acquiescence in the exile 
 of his house. All around him called him King of Eng- 
 land ; and he certainly made it the object of his life to 
 become king in reality. In English history, to distin- 
 guish him from his son, he is known as the Old Pretender. 
 But a title which friend or foe alike might give him, and 
 which was therefore used in negotiations with the French 
 Court, was the Chevaher de St. George. That he was 
 not deficient in personal bravery he had no opportunity 
 in this attempt to show ; but he showed it afterwards 
 
 when fighting (one might think somewhat unwisely,) 
 against his countrymen at the battles of Oudenarde and 
 Malplaquet. He was now nearly twenty. 
 
 The French force that King Lewis was going to send 
 to aid him consisted of five men-of-war with transports, 
 conveying about 4,000 soldiers. Just as it Failure of 
 was about to sail from Dunkirk, when secrecy attempt, 
 and speed were all-important to such an expedition, the 
 young prince fell ill of the measles. The ships could 
 not start without him. During the delay the English 
 Government received information, and sent Admiral Sir 
 George Byng with a fleet of fifteen ships which blockaded 
 Dunkirk. The army in Scotland was small, but large 
 forces were collected at York. Byng's fleet was driven 
 from its moorings by high winds, and the French ships 
 escaped. When they appeared off the coast of Scotland, 
 signals were made according to agreement, but the 
 Jacobites on shore made no answer to the signals. The 
 French admiral thereupon insisted upon returning. He 
 had received positive orders not to risk a landing unless 
 there was a rising of the Jacobites to co-operate with the 
 French troops. The Chevalier and many of those with 
 him wished very much to land to try the effect of their 
 presence, confident that his friends would rise then if 
 not before. The French admiral returned, however, to 
 France as quickly as possible, for Byng's ships had 
 followed, and were close behind him. They caught the 
 rearmost of his vessels, but the others escaped. As the 
 result of this attempted rebellion, to be followed after 
 seven, and again after thirty-seven years, by others, which 
 were more successful for a time, and finally more disas- 
 trous, two bills were passed through Parliament, one a 
 temporary suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, so that 
 the Government might be enabled to arrest people upon 
 suspicion ; the other, a law that a Justice of the Peace 
 
 L2 
 
 i, n 
 
148 
 
 Tlie Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1707. 
 
 might make anyone appear before him and take an oath 
 abjuring the Pretender. 
 
 It is as well to notice that though this attempt was a 
 miserable failure, its chance of success was probably 
 
 Its chance ^^^^^^ ^^^'^ ^^^^^ ^^ ^^ Fifteen or in the 
 oiL^^i. Forty-five Rebellion. The attack of measles 
 and the unpreparedness of the Jacobites on shore were 
 fortunate for the United Kingdom. At that time, it must 
 be remembered, the feeling of irritation against the 
 Union was exceedingly strong in Scotland, and England 
 was engaged in a great Continental war which taxed her 
 strength. Time was the healer of the first wound. 
 Against this we must set the reflexions that in the re- 
 beUion against George I. the house was new to the 
 throne, and that even by the reign of his son it had done 
 nothing to gain the affections of the people. After the 
 accession of George III., ' born and bred a Briton,' not 
 * an Englishman,' there is no more suspicion of disloyalty 
 in Scotland. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 PETER THE GREAT AND CHARLES XII. 
 
 Section l.—The Norih-Eastern State System. 
 
 In the north-east of Europe there was a group of 
 countries which, though not without influence upon the 
 North- history of the rest of Europe, for nations 
 
 Eastern cannot live separate lives without intercourse 
 
 ijStem. with their neighbours, may yet be regarded as 
 
 forming a separate State System. This group must not, 
 however, be left undescribed, partly on account of this con- 
 nexion, but more especially on account of the remarkable 
 
EUROPE 
 
 LLUSTRATING WARSOF 
 CHARLESXIIfcPETER-mE GREAT | 
 
 Russia. 
 
 Peter the Great and Oiarles XIL 149 
 
 character of two monarchs, one of whom influenced the 
 future of his own country, and, through it, of Europe, to an 
 extent which has been granted to few in the Round the 
 whole course of history. This State System Baltic, 
 consists of Denmark, Poland, Sweden, and Russia. Just 
 as the nations that occupy the stage of what we call 
 ancient history are grouped around the Mediterranean 
 Sea, so are these nations gathered round the Baltic. 
 
 Of the four, Russia had as yet no territory on the 
 shores of the Baltic, but she had already turned her eyes 
 in that direction, seeing the advantage which 
 a footing on the coast would give. Her rulers 
 had already shaped their policy ; her opponents, notably 
 the famous Gustavus Adolphus, had planned resistance 
 to it. Poland had two provinces, West Prussia and 
 Livonia, on the coast of the Baltic. She had also a 
 feudal suzerainty over two others. 
 
 The three countries, Denmark, Poland, Sweden, had 
 for about two centuries preserved a balance of power in 
 the Baltic basin. At one time one of them 
 would be stronger, then another. Of the 
 three, Denmark was now the least important. Nearly 
 two centuries had elapsed since it had been at the height 
 of its power, but its territory was still much larger than 
 that which it has to-day. The kingdom of Norway was 
 under its crown, and the duchies of Schleswig and Hol- 
 stein had the King of Denmark for their duke, an 
 arrangement which remained in force until the Danish 
 war of 1864. Yet, although separately Denmark was 
 not to be feared by its neighbours, it might become im- 
 portant at any time as a factor in a combination. 
 
 Sweden, also, had passed the epoch of her greatest 
 power, but very substantial results remained 
 behind. Not only did she hold all the country ^'*'*'***'"' 
 which is now Sweden, but also the province of Fin- 
 
 Denmark. 
 
 Londprt. Longuiaiiut Sb Co. 
 
ISO 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 land, on the east of the Gulf of Bothnia, which had 
 long been hers, but which now belongs to Russia; and 
 in Germany, upon the other side, to the south of the 
 Baltic, she still held part of Pomerania. The period of 
 Sweden's greatest power was during the two years when 
 her king, Gustavus Adolphus, placed himself at the head 
 of the Protestants of Germany, and turned back the tide 
 of defeat from the Protestant cause. Whatever may 
 have been his motives, and those who have studied his 
 history most are agreed to place them very high, the 
 aggrandisement of his country was certainly the result 
 of his campaign. During the remainder of the century 
 Sweden was looked upon as the chief Protestant power 
 in Europe. England, indeed, alone of other States, was 
 capable of disputing the position. Under Cromwell, 
 England was the chief Protestant State, and Cromwell 
 valued the alliance of Sweden. In the reign of Charles 
 II., when the counsels of Sir WiUiam Temple prevailed 
 over baser counsels for a short year, and England deter- 
 mined again to assume that position, it was Sweden that 
 with Holland joined England in the Triple AlUance, 
 the mere formation of which was sufficient to bring 
 France to terms. Sweden, however, did not join the 
 Grand Alliance, probably because she felt that she had 
 work to do nearer home ; by that time, moreover, her 
 influence in Europe was beginning to wane. 
 
 The kingdom of Poland had large territory, and yet 
 did not exercise much influence on the politics of Europe. 
 The reason for this is to be sought in the 
 Poland. nature of its government. Poland was an 
 
 Elective Monarchy. During the fifteenth and sixteenth 
 centuries the monarchy had been nominally elective but 
 really hereditary. But on the extinction of the house of 
 Jagellon, which during that time had been on the throne, 
 the nominal character of the monarchy became real. At 
 
 Peter the Great and Charles XIL 1 5 1 
 
 each vacancy of the throne there had been the form of A 
 an election by the Diet, but after 1572 this form became 
 a reality. The evils to which an elective monarchy is ^ 
 liable showed themselves in Poland. All the nobles had 7 
 a right to elect, and all the sons of nobles were nobles ^ 
 themselves. A hundred thousand armed men appeared 
 on horseback at the elections. The candidates, before 
 election, pledged themselves to increase the privileges of 
 their electors, until all the kingly power was given away, 
 and Poland became what has been well termed a demo- 
 cracy of nobles. Foreign powers also interfered, and 
 used every means in their power by bribery, corruption, 
 intimidation, to influence the elections. Defeated candi- 
 dates raised up factions ; and the ultimate dismemberment 
 of Poland, after two centuries of this experience, however 
 unjustifiable on the part of those engaged in it, was the 
 natural fruit of the form of its government, and of the , 
 conduct of its own nobility. 
 
 Of the four nations fomiing the north-eastern group, 
 Russia, though on the eve of a forward start which would 
 in an incredibly short space of time make it 
 a first-rate power in Europe, was the least ^"^'^• 
 known. It was usually called Muscovy, from the name 
 of its capital city. It possessed very little of European 
 civilisation. The often quoted phrase of Napoleon—* If 
 you scrape a Russian, you will find a Tartar,' which 
 means that under a superficial European polish the 
 Russian is still at heart an Asiatic, would, before the ac- 
 cession of Peter the Great, have required the modification 
 of omitting the first clause. The superficial polish was 
 not there. Few in the West of Europe knew anything 
 about Russia. It was not an element in the calculations 
 of statesmen. The Russians in return knew nothing 
 about Europe. They were a nation of uncivilised bar- 
 barians closely connected with Asia, slightly connected 
 
152 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1689. 
 
 with Europe. The Russian empire had spread only in 
 the direction of the north and east. At the accession of 
 Peter it had none of the coast line either on the Baltic or 
 the Black Sea. Yet Peter's predecessors had already 
 begun to covet it. There is extant a letter by Gustavus 
 Adolphus,in which he showed that Russia would become 
 formidable, a dangerous neighbour to Sweden, if it held 
 certain places which he regarded as the keys of the 
 Baltic. He thought he had taken measures sufficient to 
 secure these from falling into the hands of the Russians. 
 It certainly is a tribute to his foresight that those very 
 places stand about St. Petersburg. 
 
 The rise of Russia to a prominent place amongst 
 European kingdoms, however the way may have been 
 prepared for it, was due to one man, Peter the Great, 
 whose character and work we proceed to describe. 
 
 Section 11. —Peter the Great, 
 
 Peter's father was married twice. He had two sons by 
 the first marriage— Feodor, a deUcate invalid, and Ivan, 
 who was half an idiot, besides several daugh- 
 Eariy life. ^^^^^ ^^ whom the most remarkable was the 
 Princess Sophia, an ambitious and talented woman ; by 
 the second marriage, he had only Peter and one daughter. 
 When Feodor succeeded his father, Sophia obtained all 
 the real power in the State, and when he died, after a 
 short reign, sh^ managed still to preserve power as regent 
 and guardian of her two brothers. Lest Peter should 
 wrest it from her, she did her best to stunt his education ; 
 she dismissed the tutor in whom his father 
 had placed confidence, and surrounded him 
 with worthless companions. But it was all 
 in vain. When he was nearly seventeen, the party in 
 
 Real acces 
 sion to 
 power. 
 
 A.D. 1689. Peter the Great and Charles XII. 153 
 
 the State who were opposed to his sister encouraged 
 him to throw off her tyrannous regency. He sent her 
 into a convent, and her advisers into exile. This was 
 in 1689, the year after the English Revolution. 
 
 Peter owed nothing to education. But by the mere 
 force of genius, on taking up the reins of power, he imme- 
 diately saw the state of his country, and 
 made up his mind to reform it. He recog- "'* p°''*^- 
 nised that Russia was backward as compared with 
 European nations; and his policy, conceived at the 
 first and resolutely followed, may be summed up in the 
 one phrase that he wished to make Russia European 
 With this object he sent many of his subjects abroad, to 
 study how Russia could learn improvements from the 
 other nations of Europe, and after a time he detei-mined 
 to travel himself. 
 
 We know his appearance almost as well as if he lived 
 m our own days, so often has it been described. He 
 was very tall and had the figure of a powerful, ^j^ 
 strong man. His features were strongly anSs*^^^" 
 marked, a fine, massive forehead over which great clusters 
 of jet-black hair would hang, massive brows, from under 
 ^vhich his black eyes flashed, now fierce, now piercing as 
 if he would read the very secrets of the heart His 
 mouth gave tokens of power. His smile was very 
 gracious, but his frown terrible to behold. When at 
 rest there was majesty about his face ; but at times a 
 troubled, nervous look would come over it, then would 
 follow a wild twitch of face and of hands, then a convul- 
 sion during which he was ungovernable. This seems to 
 have been hereditary ; he tried to conquer it, but never 
 could. 
 
 His visit to England was well remembered. 
 In his travels, the countries that he most "'**'^^«'5- 
 wished to see were England and Holland, for he desired 
 
 •°- - —• *^'' 
 
154 TIte Age of Anne. a. d. 1697. 
 
 to make Russia a maritime power, and he thought 
 that from these two countries he could learn useful 
 lessons. There was something very far-sighted m this 
 desire, for in the whole of his dominions 
 ^^ '°' " there was only one port. Archangel, and that 
 was in a sea which was inaccessible for half the year. 
 The Russian navy had to be created from the veo' 
 beginning, for there was not, as yet, a single ship. More- 
 over owing to an accident which he had suffered when 
 a child, he had a great distaste, almost anriounting to a 
 Lvou's horror, of water. But he conquered this so com 
 pletely that, in a storm, he once was able by his calmness 
 TquLt the terrified seamen. ' Fear not ! Whoever 
 
 Vipard of a Czar being lost at sea ? * 
 
 He visited Holland first, and there, in the dockyards 
 of Zaandam, he worked with his own hands as a ships 
 of ^^""^^""'^^^^ H^ li^ed as the other workmen, 
 Holland. ^^^ worked very hard. Thus he learnt the 
 arts of shipbuilding and navigation. After nine months 
 
 f„ Holland he passed on to London. At first he lived in 
 m Holland ne^P^^^ .^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^^ ^^.^^^ overlooked 
 
 England. jj^g Thames. He was anxious to see every- 
 thing in England, but he did not wish to be seen him- 
 ef ' At the theatre he witnessed the play from the ve^r 
 back of his box, screened from public ga^« by ^iis attend- 
 ants He looked down upon a sitting of the House of 
 Lords through a small window, where *e king and Ae 
 lords saw him and burst out laughing. When he went 
 to the kTng^s palace, he was admitted at a back door. 
 He 'lei^t privately to Oxford, but, being soon discovered, 
 he iJmedLly clme back to London without viewing 
 tho ^curiosities he intended.' He moved from Lor^don 
 to Deptford, where he occupied the house of John 
 EveWn, an English gentleman of letters, who has Irft a 
 diL^y that gives considerable insight into the social life of 
 
 A.D. 1698. Fe/er the Great and Charles XII. 155 
 
 his day. He says that the Czar and his people were 
 * right nasty ' in their habits. At Deptford Peter spent 
 his time as at Zaandam. But neither in England nor 
 in Holland did he confine himself to the work of a ship's 
 carpenter. He was making inquiries about State matters, 
 about laws and law courts, about religious matters. He 
 was inducing Englishmen, Scotchmen, Dutchmen, to 
 settle in Russia, and take their skill with them. He 
 visited Sweden and Brandenburg, and returned to his 
 dominions after an absence of about a year and a half. 
 
 The most significant of all Petef s reforms was the 
 removal of the capital. The traveller from Moscow to 
 the shores of the Baltic sets his face west- 
 ward. Peter was looking to the west for his N*=^' *=^pi^^- 
 model, and wished Russia to be European and no longer 
 Asiatic. The old associations of Moscow drove him 
 from it : the connexion with Europe enticed him to the 
 Baltic. But it well illustrates the power of Peter over 
 his subjects that he could make them quit their old 
 capital. For the Russians loved Moscow with peculiar 
 love. They call it still * the City of God,' they reverence 
 it as their * Holy Mother.' At the first sight of its towers 
 and pinnacles the Russian pilgrim falls upon his knees in 
 awe. Yet, notwithstanding this affection and the conse- 
 quent opposition of nobles, citizens, and priests, Peter 
 carried out his plan. Nor was he even deterred by the 
 physical difficulty of his task. The ground on which 
 Petersburg is built was a marshy swamp. The city had 
 to be built on piles, like a Dutch city. Thousands, it is 
 said, lost their lives during the building, but Peter did 
 not hesitate, and Petersburg, called after his own name, 
 stands as a monument of his firmness. 
 
 The alteration of the calendar also was Qj^^nge in 
 another of Peter's reforms. The Russians calendar. 
 hitherto had dated from the creation, but he adopted 
 
156 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1700. 
 
 the system in use in the rest of Europe. It is to be 
 noted that the Russians still reckon by the old style. 
 
 Peter the Great was a reformer in ecclesiastical as 
 well as in political matters. He abohshed the Patri- 
 AboHshes archate, thus making the union of Church 
 Patriarchate, and State complete. Hitherto the Patriarch 
 had power over the Church as despotic as that of the 
 Czar over the State. Henceforth there was to be but 
 one head. On the death of the last Patriarch he kept 
 the see unfilled ; and when the priests, disconsolate at 
 seeing the vacant chair, asked him to appoint another, 
 he said * I will be your Patriarch.' 
 
 Even the fashions of Europe were to be imitated by 
 his subjects. The habit of shaving the beard, the 
 smoking of tobacco, the very shape of dresses, 
 Fashions. ^^ bringing the women out of seclusion, all 
 of these he forced upon his reluctant people. There was 
 so much resistance to the fashion of shaving that at 
 length a tax was imposed upon those who wished to 
 retain their beards, and a medal, bearing a head orna- 
 mented with beard and whiskers, was given as a token 
 that the tax had been paid. Tobacco-smoking was not 
 unknown in Russia before, having been introduced by 
 English merchants at Archangel. The chief opposition 
 to it was raised by the priests, on the ground that * not 
 that which goeth into a man but that which cometh out 
 of a man defileth him.' Patterns of dresses were hung 
 up at the entrance to a town, and the inhabitants were 
 to be punished if their clothes were not cut in accordance 
 with the Government pattern. But the social change 
 which did most mischief was his determination that 
 the women were to be drawn from their Oriental seclu- 
 sion, a change for which they were wholly unpre- 
 pared, and which, coming suddenly, could only do them 
 harm. 
 
 A.D. 1700. Peter the Great and Charles XIL 157 
 
 The most important of his domestic reforms was the 
 institution of the Tchin. From early times there has 
 been a powerful hereditary nobihty in Russia. 
 A custom had almost grown into a law that aburlau-"' 
 no man whose ancestor had held a higher *"^''^- 
 place than the ancestor of another man could serve under 
 him without a stain upon his honour. The inconvenience 
 of such a custom is manifest. Peter's predecessor had 
 caused all the nobles to bring the records of their genea- 
 logies as if to compare them, and had then publicly 
 burnt them. This was a severe blow to the principle of 
 hereditary nobility; but Peter substituted for it an official 
 nobility, called the Tchin, publishing a table of fourteen 
 degrees, civil and military, by which all questions of 
 rank were to be decided, the lower grades being duly 
 subordinate to the higher. Thus he substituted what is 
 called a Bureaucracy for an Aristocracy. 
 
 On his return from his first journey Peter found a 
 formidable conspiracy against his authority. He put it 
 down with great severity, actually assisting ^h^ 
 with his own hands at the execution of the Str^iitzes. 
 conspirators. A corps of troops called the Strelitzes, 
 holding a position of great importance in the State 
 somewhat analogous to that of the Praetorians at Rome, 
 formed the centre of this conspiracy. Peter abolished 
 the corps. 
 
 With the help of artisans from Holland and England 
 he created a navy. When a child he delighted in a little 
 boat which he saw upon the river that flows through 
 Moscow. He made that little boat the germ of the 
 Russian navy. He christened it ' the Little Grandsire ' 
 and had it removed to Petersburg. ' 
 
158 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 Section III.— Charles XII. 
 
 A.D. 1697. 
 
 Of the States which formed the North-Eastern State 
 System, there is no doubt that at the end of the seven- 
 Charles XII teenth century Sweden was the most powerful. 
 K.^.lUi. ' Its very power, and the fact that the power 
 was of recent growth, excited the animosity of its neigh- 
 bours ; and when, in 1697, Charles XII. succeeded his 
 father, at the early age of fifteen, they thought that they 
 saw their opportunity. Each one of the neighbours 
 wanted some part of the Swedish dominions. The Czar 
 Peter wanted the Baltic Provinces, without 
 His enemies. ^^}^i^\y^ \i would be impossible for him to 
 keep up intercourse with Western Europe. Frederick 
 Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony and King of 
 Poland, wanted to rescue the Provinces of Livonia and 
 West Prussia, which had formerly belonged to Poland, 
 but had been wrested from her by the Swedes. 
 Frederick, King of Denmark, wanted Holstein. The 
 Duke of Holstein was brother-in-law of Charles of 
 Sweden, as well as his boon companion ; in spirit similar 
 to Charles, he had been his associate in every mad ex- 
 ploit. Holstein, as was natural, stood under the protec- 
 tion of Sweden, although not part of the dominions of 
 Charles. These three neighbours formed a league ; from 
 different quarters they were to make a simultaneous 
 attack on Sweden. 
 
 According to his father's will, Charles was to remain 
 for some time under a regency. But the States met and 
 . . declared him no longer a minor, although 
 
 wfrr^"^ he was only fifteen. Until the arrival of the 
 news of the triple league which had been formed against 
 him, he was contented to allow the Council of Regency 
 to govern for him. He sat at the council table— some say 
 
 A.D. 1697. Pefer the Great and Charles XII. 159 
 
 ' on it '—but appeared to take no interest in the business 
 transacted. But when the news was brought that the 
 league had been made against him, he suddenly said •— 
 ' I am resolved never to begin an unjust war, nor to 
 finish a just one except by the destruction of my enemies 
 My resolution is fixed. I will attack the first who 
 declares against me, and, having conquered him, I shall 
 be able to strike terror into the others.' 
 
 The inert beginning of his reign was, indeed, no due 
 to the extraordinary character of this young prince. He 
 was very self-willed, and had apparently set ^i^cha 
 his aims clearly before him quite early in raaer^" 
 life. When he was a boy, Q. Curtius was his favourite 
 author, Alexander the Great his favourite hero To 
 play the part of Alexander, in the altered circumstances 
 of the world, was his ambition. It has been well said 
 he was not Alexander, but he should have been Alex- 
 ander's first soldier. Among his predecessors, Gustavus 
 Adolphus was the one whose career he wished to imitate, 
 especially in the two glorious years when he was victorious 
 arbiter of the fortunes of Germany. But he differed from 
 Gustavus, in that he made military glory the end rather 
 than the means of his ambition. Napoleon the Great 
 denied the right of Charles even to the title of a great 
 general. He was certainly a born soldier. He loved 
 fighting. He loved danger. He said the noise of 
 musket balls was the sweetest of music to him. He 
 could endure all hardships, hunger, cold, fatigue. The 
 pleasures and the splendour of a court had no attraction 
 for him. He was simple, almost mean, in his attire. 
 Spartan in his way of life. But he was self-willed 
 and headstrong, and would not take advice. It is said 
 that at his coronation he snatched the crown from the 
 hands of the Archbishop, and placed it himself upon his 
 head. 
 
i6o TIu Age of Anne. a. d. 1700. 
 
 It had been agreed that the attack of his three oppo- 
 nents should be simultaneous, but either their arrange- 
 ments were imperfect, or the quickness of 
 ":Sk. Charles defeated them. He kept his word 
 and attacked the first who invaded his t^"-''°5y- J?« 
 began with Denmark, whose king was mvadmg Holste.n. 
 Charles himself attacked Copenhagen, and m six weeks 
 the King of Denmark was at his feet, promising to 
 leave Holstein unmolested, and to quit the alliance. 
 
 Frederick Augustus the Strong was the second. He 
 could not persuade the Polish nobility to bear any part 
 in the invasion, and was therefore obliged to 
 wani°^ °' fall back upon his hereditary dominions, his 
 subjects in which were not so independent. The unfor- 
 tunite Saxons had no interest in the war, but they were 
 obUged to submit. The inhabitants of the provinces 
 wh ch he wished to recover were not pleased to see his 
 Tmiy and kept quickening his footsteps He had just 
 army, anu ^^ ? . j,; ^h^n he found that the 
 commenced besieging Kiga, wic 
 victorious Charles was coming against him, and be 
 
 '"'SThrtled towards the Czar Peter, who was 
 layin- siege to the town of Narva. His army was in- 
 trenched and defended with 140 pieces of 
 ^SZ^To.. cannon. Charles's army amounted only to 
 8 000 men, whereas that of Peter consisted accordmg o 
 S "ccounts of ten times the number according to 
 his own account, of about 45,ooo. But the Swedes had 
 s iU he admirable discipline of Gustavus Adolphus 
 whilst very few of the Russians had any ^^c'plme ^'^J^ 
 thev were raw recruits, serfs, firesh from the woods who 
 had rever smelt powder. On the day before the attack 
 of the Swedes, Peter left the camp to hasten the arrival 
 of some reinforcements. The Russian officers were angry 
 Aat he left a foreigner in command ; there was a spirit 
 
 A.D. 1700-6. Peter the Great and Charles XII. i6i 
 
 of mutiny among the Russian troops, and the whole 
 army, in spite of its intrenchments, fell an easy prey to 
 Charles. The battle was fought during a snow-storm 
 and there seems to have been a good deal of confusion in 
 the Russian ranks. 
 
 But the ease with which he won the battle of Narva 
 was the cause of Charles's ruin. Thinking that he could 
 at any time finish the struggle with Peter, for whom he 
 entertained a profound contempt, he turned aside to 
 follow and to dethrone the King of Poland. The Czar 
 could have desired nothing better. This breathing time 
 enabled him to recruit and drill his army : from their 
 enemies, the Swedes, Peter was learning how to beat 
 them. Charles, meanwhile, followed Augustus the Strong 
 into Poland, and then into his hereditary^ kingdom of 
 Saxony. Five years Charles wasted in needless cam- 
 paigns, but at length he compelled Augustus formally to 
 renounce the crown of Poland, His ministers wished 
 him to take the crown of Poland himself, but in that 
 unquiet monarchy he preferred the part of king-maker, 
 and he forced the Diet of Nobles to elect, as king, a 
 young PoHsh nobleman named Stanislaus Leczinski. 
 Objection being taken to the candidate's age, Charles 
 silenced it by saying, ' He is as old as I am.' 
 
 Charles kept his camp at Alt Ranstadt, near Leipzig. 
 He was now at the summit of his career, and his position 
 was very proud. The destinies of Europe Charles 
 may be said to have been in his hand. On arbiter of 
 the one side he was tempted to imitate his ^"^p*- 
 ancestor, Gustavus Adolphus, and, declaring himself the 
 * protector of the Evangelical religion,' to form a great 
 Protestant confederation, which would be the Grand 
 Alliance with the Austrian element omitted. On the 
 other hand, Lewis XIV., who was with difficulty resisting 
 the combination against him, had sent ambassadors to 
 
 M, H. M 
 
 - *"■ • — 
 
l62 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1707. 
 
 implore his aid. Had Charles turned his steps west- 
 ward, it is not easy to predict what would have resulted 
 from his interference. The Grand Allies knew the 
 danger, and Marlborough himself paid a visit to the 
 Swedish conqueror, with more than his usual honey of 
 flattery on his Mps. Conqueror of Blenheim and of 
 Ramiliies, he told Charles that he would* gladly take 
 lessons from him in the art of war. But Marlborough 
 soon understood that Charles would not interfere, and 
 that all his preparations were designed against Russia. 
 Amongst the lessons in war which Charles could teach, 
 we may wonder whether it was one to allow a defeated 
 enemy time to gather up his strength again ? 
 
 Section IV. — Pultowa. 
 
 Whilst Charles XII. was campaigning, king-making, 
 sitting as arbiter of Europe in his camp at Alt Ranstadt, 
 Peter was steadily preparing to fight him again. His 
 soldiers were overcoming their fear of the Swedes, for, 
 in the absence of their king, Peter had beaten them 
 once, had captured Narva itself, and had conquered the 
 province of Ingria. He took a Swedish town, and, whilst 
 he strengthened its fortifications, he renamed it Schlus- 
 selburg or Key-town, because he said that it was the key 
 to Sweden. 
 
 When Charles at length determined to carry on the 
 war with Russia, it is probable, if he had known his own 
 Charles's niind clearly and carried out his plan, that 
 campaign j^g must have prevailed. Napoleon criticised 
 
 against *■ '■ 
 
 Russia. this campaign very unfavourably. There is 
 
 no doubt that Charles should have marched straight 
 upon Moscow, for, when once he had reached the Russian 
 frontier, a fortnight's hard marching would have brought 
 him under its walls. On account of his delay the Russians 
 
 A.D. 1708. Peter t/ie Great and Charles XII. 163 
 
 were enabled to lay waste the country. With a strange 
 fatahty Charles turned southwards, having been tempted 
 by the promise of a remarkable, though not a trustworthy, 
 ally. 
 
 Mazeppa was by birth a Pole. Having been found 
 guilty of misconduct, he had been tied naked on a wild 
 horse, which carried him amongst the Cossacks 
 of the wild barren country called the Ukraine. ^^*^pp*- 
 The Cossacks received him kindly. He enjoyed their 
 warlike, roving mode of life, and rose amongst them till he 
 became their hetman, or chief. He had been a great 
 favourite of Peter, but he wanted to become an inde- 
 pendent sovereign. On this account, and because of an 
 insult which he suffered at the hands of the Czar, he in- 
 trigued with Charles, and promised that he would join 
 him in the Ukraine, at the head of 30,000 Cossacks. 
 But the Cossacks, when they discovered his intention, 
 refused to desert the Czar, or to follow Mazeppa ; and 
 when, after weary marching, Charles reached the trysting 
 place, Mazeppa could only bring to him a mere handful 
 of men. 
 
 The Swedish army was by this time suffering terribly 
 from the want of supplies, and from the frequent attacks of 
 the Russian mounted skirmishers. Through- Reinforce- 
 out the severe cold of the Russian winter Swedefde 
 Charles would not let his army rest in winter feated. 
 quarters. He was very ignorant of the country, and 
 wasted his strength in fruitless marches and counter- 
 marches. His only hope now lay in the reinforcements 
 and supplies which he hoped that one of his generals 
 was bringing to him; for he had made a strategical 
 mistake in coming so far from his base of operations 
 without a proper line of communication. The reinforcing 
 army was beaten by the Russians ; its remnant suffered 
 
 M2 
 
i64 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1709. 
 
 terribly as it struggled on, and at length joined the 
 main body, few in numbers, without supplies, and, in 
 many cases, even without shoes. 
 
 The town of Pultowa is situated upon a branch of the 
 Dnieper, called the Vorskla. It was a magazine of 
 Battle of stores. For this reason Charles thought it 
 Pultowa, jjjg |3gg|. chance to attack it, and Peter was 
 
 July 8, A.D. . -I /• -Tk 
 
 1709. equally determined on its defence. Peter 
 
 had much the larger army, and his soldiers were better 
 equipped and well entrenched. Peter contrived that 
 Charles's army should fight with their backs turned to- 
 wards the angle made by the Vorskla falling into the 
 Dnieper. Charles had been wounded in the heel in a 
 skirmish a few days before the battle. He was obliged 
 to be carried about during the battle in a litter. It gives 
 some idea of the fury with which the battle raged, when 
 we hear that it only lasted a few hours, and that, out of 
 twenty-four bearers of this litter, twenty-one were killed. 
 Both of the kings fought bravely, for they knew that the 
 future of their countries depended on the issue of the 
 fighting. The battle began very early in the morning,* 
 and the Swedes charged with such impetuosity that they 
 broke the Russian lines. But by some mistake the 
 Swedish cavalry was not ready to follow up this advan- 
 tage. The Russians had time to rally. Peter brought 
 up a great force of cannon, and, at the same time, sent 
 a general to attack the Swedish reserve. A final charge 
 of the Russians followed, and the Swedes were completely 
 overcome. Mazeppa himself went up to Charles, and, 
 knowing that persuasion was vain, made a sign to his 
 attendants to place him on a horse ; then, holding the 
 bridle, he made their horses swim the river. They fled 
 to Turkey. Four days later the whole Swedish army 
 surrendered. There was no alternative for the proud 
 troops that had always been conquerors. Peter ex- 
 
 A.D. 1710-11. Peter the Great atid Charles XIL 165 
 
 pressed great admiration of them, but sent them into 
 
 Siberia. 
 
 The results of the battle of Pultowa are very impor- 
 tant. On the very day of the battle Peter wrote, * Thank 
 God, the foundations of Petersburg at length Results of 
 stand firm.' The province of Livonia and battle. 
 part of Finland fell at once into his hands. Denmark 
 laid claim to Scania, Prussia to Pomerania. The 
 Swedish monarchy was reduced to its original hmits, 
 from which the genius of one man had raised it, and to 
 which the folly of another had now brought it back again. 
 Sweden's financial difficulties made her regret that she 
 had attempted work that was too much for her. But 
 the country in which most joy was expressed was Poland, 
 where Charles's nominee was at once driven off the throne, 
 and Augustus the Strong resumed his place. 
 
 But before Peter could consolidate his conquests, he 
 had one more serious crisis through which to pass, and 
 one which almost overwhelmed him. Partly war between 
 because Charles had taken refuge in Turkey, Russia and 
 and partly because Turkey was jealous of 
 the growing power of Russia, a war sprang up between 
 those two powers. It was by no means the last of such 
 wars, and some people think that it is the traditional poHcy 
 of Russian statesmen never to cease struggling for the pos- 
 session of Constantinople. On this occasion Peter imi- 
 tated his late antagonist's rashness and contempt for his 
 enemy. Promises had been made by traitorous subjects of 
 the sultan ; he believed them as Charles had ^hg ^^^ 
 believed Mazeppa. He crossed the Pruth with of the Pmth. 
 his army, but found himself hemmed in by a much larger 
 number of the enemy. The Russian army was rescued 
 by the Czarina Catherine, a Livonian woman of humble 
 birth, who had been taken prisoner by the Russians on 
 the very day of her marriage to a Swedish sergeant who 
 
1 66 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1 71 1 14. 
 
 Ill 
 
 was killed at the same time. After various vicissitudes 
 of fortune she had attracted the notice of the Czar by 
 her beauty and her wit : and he had publicly announced 
 his marriage to her when setting out from Moscow on 
 his expedition against Turkey. She was a woman of 
 very sweet temper, and had remarkable influence over 
 her husband, being the only person who could control 
 him during his fits. He had not wished her to accompany 
 the army; but she had begged hard, and to the great 
 delight of the soldiers she was allowed to go with them. 
 In the great strait of the Russian army it was Catherine 
 who proposed that a very rich present should be sent to 
 the Grand Vizier, giving her own jewels for the purpose 
 and encouraging others to give. Negotiations followed. 
 The Czar surrendered all claim to Azov and 
 reaty. ^^ ^^ Black Sea ; and he further engaged 
 
 not to interfere in the affairs of Poland. 
 
 Section V. — End 0/ Charles XII. and of Peter, 
 
 Since Pultowa Charles had been at Bender, a town 
 not far from the frontier of Turkey. When he reproached 
 ChariesXii. ^^ Grand Vizier with letting Peter the Great 
 at Bender. escape, he received in reply the taunt : * It is 
 not good that all kings should be away from their 
 peoples.' The Turks had made their illustrious guest an 
 allowance, but this was now stopped. A little later he 
 received a direct order to depart, and when that failed 
 he was actually besieged in his house at Bender by the 
 Turkish troops. He fought them from room to room. 
 When he was at length overpowered, he was carried 
 to a place where he feigned illness for some months. 
 After this madness, having received pressing letters from 
 Sweden, and hearing of her reverses, he suddenly deter- 
 mined to go home. He travelled through Germany on 
 
 A.D. 1714-18. Peter the Great and Charles XII . 167 
 
 horseback, in disguise, with only two companions. In 
 sixteen days he arrived before Stralsund, and it is said 
 that he had ridden so fast that his boots had to be cut 
 off from his legs. Stralsund was the last town that the 
 Swedes had been able to retain on the south of the Baltic, 
 and very soon a force was besieging it, composed of 
 Danes, Saxons, Prussians, and Russians. He was obliged 
 to escape secretly from the town, and immediately after 
 his departure it surrendered. 
 
 Not even his terrible experiences were sufficient to 
 teach the fiery Swede. He had learnt nothing, he had 
 forgotten nothing. With enemies enough p^^^^, 
 around him, and with his country exhausted, P^««™^;,8 
 he proposed to invade England and restore 
 the Pretender. He actually did invade Norway, and 
 met his death at the siege of Fredericshall. 
 
 His fall was destined to a barren strand, 
 
 A petty fortress, and a dubious hand ; 
 
 He left the name, at which the world grew pale, 
 
 To point a moral or adorn a tale. 
 
 Johnson, ' Vanity of Human Wishes.' 
 
 The later history of Peter the Great need not detain 
 us long. He made another journey through the different 
 countries of Europe, in which he visited Peterthe 
 Holland again, and Prussia, and spent six ^^^^ 
 months in France, where he romped with the Joumey. 
 young king, and stood in admiration before Richelieu's 
 picture. * Great man,' he said, ' I would gladly give thee 
 half my dominions if thou wouldst teach me to rule the 
 other half.' While he was visiting thq. mint in France, a 
 medal dropped at his feet : picking it up he found on it 
 his own likeness, with the motto Vires acquirit eundo. 
 
 One dark cloud hangs over this part of Petef s life. 
 He had a son by his first wife, a boy of strange temper. 
 
i68 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1725. 
 
 A.D. I713. 
 
 The Protestant Succession. 
 
 169 
 
 :l ' 
 
 
 Death of 
 his son. 
 
 who, sympathising with the party of rebellious priests, had 
 always opposed his father. On Peter's return his son 
 ran away, first to Vienna and then to Naples. 
 He was brought back by promises that he 
 should not be punished, but on his return he was con- 
 demned as guilty of conspiracy. It was given out in a 
 proclamation that Alexis had died in a convulsive fit, but 
 there were many who thought that the father himself had 
 put him to death. 
 
 Not long after, to his great grief, he lost his other 
 son, Peter, the son of Catherine, and in February 1725, 
 Death of ^^ ^^^^ himself. He died in the faith of a 
 Peter the Christian. * Lord, I believe, help thou mine 
 unbelief/ and then, * hereafter.' These were 
 his last words. What he meant by them no one can 
 say, but they certainly may be taken as a motto of his 
 work. It was for posterity, not for himself : therein lies 
 his true claim to the name of Great. The later history 
 of Russia is his best monument. 
 
 Yet the civilisation which he gave to Russia was 
 superficial, and there is a world of meaning in the phrase 
 of the witty Frenchman, who said, * The Russians were 
 rotten before they were ripe.' 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE PROTESTANT SUCCESSION. 
 
 After the great war England was exhausted and glad 
 
 of rest From the Peace of Utrecht to the end of Queen 
 
 Anne's reign it may be said that there is no 
 
 reign, jj^^^j^j^j^^ Qf historical importance, except the 
 
 events connected with the question of the succession to the 
 
 throne, and of this the interest culminates towards the 
 
 end. 
 
 Bearing in mind what the Revolution of 1688 wrought 
 for England, and what it prevented, it was felt to be 
 important that its work should not be undone. Measures to 
 During William's life the cause of the Revolu- ^S'^t sec- 
 tion, or, to put it in other words, of consti- cession, 
 tutional government, had been quite safe. As long, also, 
 as Anne should live, there was no danger ; but the friends 
 of the cause felt that there was a risk with respect to her 
 successor. Immediately after the Revolution the Bill 
 of Rights, the first statute of WiUiam and Mary, had 
 decided that the crown should pass first to the heirs of 
 Mary, then to Princess Anne and to her heirs, after 
 that to the heirs of William by any subsequent marriage. 
 But towards the end of William's reign, when Mary had 
 died childless, when it was evident that William would 
 not marry again, and when the death of the Duke of 
 Gloucester, the only one of Anne's numerous children 
 who reached even boyhood, had disappointed the hopes 
 of the nation, new steps were taken to secure the succes- 
 sion in safe hands. By the Act of Settlement, passed in 
 1 70 1, the provisions of the Bill of Rights were strengthened 
 by the declaration that upon failure of heirs to Anne and 
 William, the Electress Sophia was to succeed, and that 
 her claim should pass to her heirs. As her grandson 
 was a grown man, it seemed as if heirs in this line would 
 not be likely to fail. The principle upon which the 
 Parliament, both in the Bill of Rights and in the Act 
 of Settlement, proceeded was that of selecting the 
 nearest heir to the English throne who was a Pro- 
 testant, it was stipulated as a further security that 
 the sovereign must be in communion with the Church of 
 England. 
 
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 A.D. 1713. ^^^^ Protestant Succession. l/i 
 
 There was no descendant of King Charles I. who 
 satisfied these conditions. If there had been, the EngHsh 
 people, with their affectionate memory of who was the 
 him, would have ver>^ much preferred such Elect-- 
 .m one. But besides the family of James II., 
 Henrietta Maria, alone of the children of Charles I., had 
 left issue ; but, as she married the Roman Catholic Duke 
 of Orleans, their children were excluded from the English 
 crown. In order, therefore, to find a satisfactory suc- 
 cessor for the throne it was necessary to turn to the 
 descendants of Ehzabeth, sister of Charles I. Her mother. 
 Her name takes us back some distance in Elizabeth. 
 EngHsh and in Continental history. When her father, 
 King James I., ascended the English throne, uniting the 
 crowns of England and Scotland, she was a little girl not 
 quite seven years of age. She grew up a very beautiful 
 princess, whose praises poets sang, and, wearing whose 
 colours, soldiers of fortune were ever ready to fight Her 
 hand was sought for a dauphin of France, but without 
 success. She was not seventeen when, in February 
 161 3, she married Frederick, the Elector Palatine of the 
 Rhine, whose capital was Heidelberg. From that time 
 forward her life was stormy and full of trouble, intimately 
 mixed up with the early part of the disastrous Thirty 
 Years' War, then with the difficulties of her brother 
 Charles and his house. But living through these she 
 survived the Restoration, and came with her nephew to 
 England, dying two years after it in London, 
 
 Elizabeth's husband, Frederick, the plector Palatine, 
 was elected King of Bohemia by the Protestant party in 
 that country. But the house of Austria had ^^^ father, 
 regarded the process of election as a mere Frederick. 
 form, and claimed that the succession to the crown of 
 Bohemia was theirs. A war was the result. Germany 
 at that time being in a state of disunion and hostility 
 
1/2 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1 7 13. 
 
 A.D. 1 713. 
 
 The Protestant Succession. 
 
 173 
 
 'taiiii 
 
 between the two great religious parties, the war became 
 a religious war, and continued to spread until the dispute 
 about the succession in Bohemia had set the whole of 
 Europe in a flame. But the first portion of the Thirty 
 Years' War was entirely a triumph for the house of 
 Austria and the Roman Catholics. Not only was Bo- 
 hemia in a few months wrested from the hands of 
 Frederick, called in derision the Winter King, but he 
 was driven forth an outcast from his own hereditary 
 dominions, and his electorate was given to the Duke 
 of Bavaria. At the Peace of WestphaUa, in 1648, part 
 of these dominions was restored to Frederick's family, 
 and an eighth electorate established to avoid disputes. 
 
 Frederick and Elizabeth had a large family, the 
 Electress Sophia, who inherited her mother's claim to 
 Her br h r ^^^ English crown, coming twelfth out of 
 Prince ' thirteen. Amongst her elder brothers and 
 Rupert. sisters, two have names famous in English 
 
 history, Prince Rupert and Prince Maurice. Prince 
 Rupert, who commanded the right wing of the royahst 
 army at the Battle of Edgehill in 1642, and whose im- 
 petuous charge carried that wing triumphantly forward, 
 regardless of the rest of the battle, was brother to the 
 Electress Sophia, who, if Queen Anne had died in the 
 spring of 1 7 14 instead of in the summer, would have been 
 Queen of England. His impetuosity led to the defeats 
 of Marston Moor and Naseby, and to the surrender of 
 Bristol. The license in plundering which he allowed his 
 soldiers was a reminiscence of his early experience in 
 the German wars. After the conclusion of the Civil 
 War Prince Rupert had distinguished himself, first as a 
 naval commander, and later in the domain of science. 
 
 The Electress Sophia was born at the Hague in 1630, 
 some three months after Gustavus Adolphus landed in 
 Germany. She married Ernest Augustus, titular bishop 
 
 of Osnaburg, Duke of Brunswick- Luneburg, who in 1692 
 was raised by the Emperor, in return for services rendered, 
 to the dignity of Elector of Hanover. Sophia Life of the 
 had her mother's beauty, and was remark- gecwss 
 able for the evenness of her temper and for 
 her acquirements. When English ambassadors came 
 to her they found that she spoke English as fluently as 
 themselves. But she was equally well versed in other 
 languages— in French and Italian as well as in Dutch 
 arid German, about which there might be a dispute which 
 should be called her native tongue. At first she was not 
 particularly eager to accept the succession to the EngUsh 
 crown. When the Act of Settlement was passed in 
 which she was named as successor, she did not think 
 it likely that she would survive Anne, and she doubted 
 whether her son George was not of too despotic a nature 
 loyally to recognise the limitations of sovereignty in 
 England. Her opinion was that it would be better for 
 the Prince of Wales, as she called him, that is the Old 
 Pretender, to change his religion and accept parlia- 
 mentary government. When, however, the Act of 
 Settlement was formally presented to her she accepted 
 the position, and expressed a hope that her descendants 
 * would never give the English people cause to be weary 
 of them.' All who stood nearer in point of blood to the 
 English throne were excluded as Roman Cathohcs, but 
 Sophia cannot be regarded as a very strong upholder of 
 the Protestant faith if the story be true that, when a 
 French agent asked what religion her daughter professed, 
 she answered, ' She is of no religion as yet' She was 
 waiting to see what would be the creed of her future 
 husband. Later, when the aged Electress still lived, and 
 it became doubtful whether she might not survive Anne, 
 it is said that she used to declare that she would die 
 happy if she could have * Queen of England ' written on 
 
 ^gt^ 
 
 ■*'■*■ 
 
174 
 
 T}ie Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1 7 14. 
 
 her coffin. But it was fortunate for England that her 
 wish was not gratified, and that the two deaths, which 
 followed each other within less than eight weeks in the 
 summer of 17 14, fell as they did. The Electress was in 
 her eighty-fourth year, and, as there was some danger 
 that the change of dynasty might lead to a rebellion, it 
 is evident that two successions coming close together 
 would be still more dangerous. 
 
 It is somewhat difficuh to estimate the real strength 
 of the Jacobite party. Exaggerated on the one side by 
 The Jacob- ^^^ ^^^^ ^^ friends and accredited agents, who 
 ites. wished to show that the party was strong 
 
 enough to be up and doing, it was exaggerated also on 
 the other side by the real or feigned alarms of enemies, 
 who wished violent measures to be adopted against it. 
 Certainly many who had been loyal subjects of William 
 and of Anne were prepared passively to accept the Old 
 Pretender upon his sister's death ; many even might have 
 taken active measures to secure his succession. Probably 
 if the young man would have consented to change his 
 rehgion, a large majority of the English people would 
 have argued that the Stuarts had learnt lessons enough 
 to make them refrain from any further attack on consti- 
 tutional government. Yet the atmosphere of the despotic 
 court in which the prince had been trained was not cal- 
 culated to make him a good constitutional king. * The 
 uses of adversity ' are sweet only if we accept its lessons, 
 and those cannot be taught who are determined not to 
 learn. At any rate it must be said in James's honour 
 that he never for an instant entertained the proposal to 
 renounce his religion. The Jacobites may be regarded 
 as an extreme wing of the Tory party. Their 
 nection with Opponents used unfairly to say that all Tories 
 the Tories. ^^j.^ Jacobites, and indeed an air of suspicion 
 that they were in favour of the exiled family hung over 
 
 A.D. 1714- 
 
 The Protestant Succession^ 
 
 17s 
 
 all the more prominent and staunch members of the Tory 
 party. The country gentry were mostly Jacobites, and it 
 was asserted that at their gatherings they drank the 
 health of * The king across the water.' 
 
 During the last years of the queen's reign a Tory 
 ministry w^as in power, and its opponents confidently 
 asserted that the object of the ministers was xhe Tory 
 to restore the Pretender. When with the ministers. 
 new reign these opponents came into power the Tory 
 ministers were impeached ; but though the facts elicited by 
 the Committee of the House of Commons are quite clear as 
 to the misconduct of the ministry with respect to the Peace 
 of Utrecht, and prove that they had sullied the honour of 
 England, there is no real evidence of a formed design to 
 restore the Pretender. The evidence against the ministers 
 Bolingbroke and Oxford falls under two heads— their 
 own letters and the statements of Whig historians. The 
 latter, if unsupported, may be dismissed as of no value ; 
 and with respect to the former it must be remembered 
 that these ministers, like many other prominent men of 
 the day, were anxious to stand well with both sides, and 
 therefore to the Stuarts exaggerated or invented their 
 services in the Jacobite cause. Of the two Oxford is 
 generally acquitted of overt treason ; but as BoUngbroke 
 afterwards entered the service of the Pretender, and 
 became his Secretary of State, this is generally taken as 
 a proof that his treason began at an earlier date. It is, 
 however, only a presumption and not a conclusive proof. 
 It may be true, according to the usual story, that Boling- 
 broke was scheming to restore the Pretender ; that, finding 
 Oxford would not go the whole length with him, he 
 determined to oust him from the ministry, and that it 
 was only the sudden death of the queen and the prompti- 
 tude of the leading Whigs which prevented the scheme 
 from being carried into effect. But if Bolingbroke's heart 
 
176 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1 714. 
 
 had been in such scheming, it is difficult to beheve that 
 he could not have done more. The following feeling also 
 actuated him : If he was not in favour of the Pretender, 
 he certainly wished to secure the continuance of his 
 party in power ; but he knew that the Elector George 
 was likely to call the Whigs to office, and he had been 
 constantly impressing upon Oxford that gradually every 
 position in the State, whatever its seeming importance, 
 should be given to a Tory, so that when the new king 
 came he might find the Tories too powerful and united 
 to remove. As Oxford was half-hearted in this scheme, 
 his rival at length resolved to drive him from the 
 ministry. 
 
 The last week of Queen Anne's life was an exciting 
 time. In the early part of it there was a quarrel in the 
 The last ministry, which led to the ejection of Oxford, 
 
 week. _^ Oxford had nominally higher power than 
 the^nistl^. Bolingbroke. Holding the office of Lord 
 High Treasurer, he was what we should now call Prime- 
 Minister, and Bolingbroke seems almost from the first to 
 have been jealous of him upon this ground ; and this 
 jealousy was increased by the contempt which he did not 
 care to conceal for Oxford's understanding. Moreover, 
 Oxford, whose strength lay in Court interest, had the 
 misfortune to offend one who had been his chief ally, 
 Lady Masham. Plerewith he fell also under the queen's 
 displeasure. It is said that an open quarrel between 
 Oxford and his rival took place in the presence of the 
 queen and Lady Masham, and that Anne dismissed 
 Oxford with contumely, taking from him the white staff, 
 the badge of office, and afterwards telling the Council 
 her reasons — that he was unpunctual; that she could 
 seldom understand him, and when she could, that no 
 dependence was to be placed on what he said ; that he 
 was often tipsy ; and that his conduct to her was im- 
 proper. 
 
 A.D. 1 714. 
 
 The Protestant Succession. 
 
 177 
 
 The question now arose, who was to succeed Oxford 
 as Lord High Treasurer ? and after long deliberations it 
 was decided to put the office into commission. But 
 before anything could be settled the queen was taken ill, 
 from which illness she never recovered. She had long 
 suffered from a complication of diseases, gout and erysi- 
 pelas ; now apoplexy followed. 
 
 We must now give an account of a man in whom at 
 this time the queen was much inclined to trust. Chasler 
 Talbot, Earl of Shrewsbury, was born in the ^. 
 
 - , T-k • TT /• Shrewsbur\r. 
 
 year of the Restoration. He was a man of His previous 
 such winning manners that King William *^*'"^^''' 
 gave him the pleasant name of * King of Hearts.' He 
 was not, however, made of the stem stuff that pubHc life 
 requires, and though he was a good deal mixed up with 
 affairs of State, he was never happy in them. His timidity 
 of character not only caused him to shrink from office, 
 but made his conduct as a statesman uncertain. He 
 early became a Protestant, though his family was 
 Catholic, and this conversion brought the ill-will of 
 King James upon him. He was one of the seven who 
 signed the declaration inviting William of Orange to 
 come over to England. As a friend to the Revolution 
 he became Secretary of State with the title of Duke of 
 Shrewsbury under William IIL, and though he more 
 than once expressed a wish to be released from office, 
 the] king would not consent to it. Shrewsbury was 
 accused of treasonable correspondence with the Stuarts, 
 and though there was reason to believe that the accusa- 
 tion was not wholly unjust, William, with great mag- 
 nanimity, would pay no attention to it. Shrewsbury's 
 conscience, however, would not let him rest, and he not 
 only retired from office, but, leaving England, went to Mve 
 at Rome. After five years' absence he returned in Anne's 
 
178 
 
 The Age of Anne. a.i); 1714. 
 
 reign, bringing with him an Italian wife. At first he 
 acted with Marlborough and the Whigs ; but the great 
 Whig ladies treating his wife with disdain, he was 
 estranged, and Hariey seized the opportunity to win him 
 to the other side. He voted with the Tories on the 
 Sacheverell trial. The queen liking him personally 
 appointed him Lord Chamberlain. Later he was also 
 made Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. 
 
 In the crisis at the end of the reign he assumed a 
 
 very prominent position. Almost the last words that 
 
 Queen Anne uttered were in giving to 
 
 "Inter Shrewsbury the staff of Lord H igh Treasurer : 
 
 Treasurer. < ^^^ j^ ^^^ ^^ g^Q^J of ^y people.' Who it 
 
 was in the Council that proposed Slirewsbury's name for 
 recommendation to the queen is a point in dispute. 
 Some say that it was Bolingbroke himself, seeing that his 
 own policy had become impossible ; others that it was 
 the work of two Whig lords, who, without summons, but 
 with the connivance of Shrewsbury himself, had entered 
 and taken their seats at the Council. 
 
 Whatever may have been the veerings in Shrews- 
 
 bmVs career, to one point he was staunch at the end as 
 
 The Protes- at the beginning of it-his loyalty to the 
 
 tant succes- Protestant succession. If he had been guilty 
 
 S""^'^' of treasonable correspondence with the 
 
 exiled family, he had quite made up his mind now. 
 
 With Shrewsbur>', one of the original inviters of King 
 
 William, at the head of affairs, it was felt at once that 
 
 the Jacobites had no chance. They themselves seem to 
 
 have been thoroughly taken aback. Every preparation 
 
 was made to secure the Hanoverian succession, and 
 
 when the queen died, August 21, 1714, George Lewis, 
 
 Elector of Hanover, was quietly proclaimed King of 
 
 Great Britain and Ireland. It was said that a Jacobite 
 
 bishop offered himself in lawn sleeves to proclaim King 
 
 A.D. 1 7 14. The Protestant Succession. 
 
 179 
 
 James III. at Charing Cross, but his friends induced him 
 to abstain from so mad a project. 
 
 George I., the new King of England, was born in the 
 year of the Restoration. He was therefore fifty-four 
 years old when he began his reign. He had 
 been trained as a soldier, and had served in ^^^^^ 
 campaigns against the Turks, and in the late war had 
 commanded in one campaign the army upon the Rhine. 
 He was one of the allies, though it usually 
 required English money to set the Hano- ^^^ ™^*' 
 verian, as well as other German troops, in motion. His 
 son, afterwards George II., fought bravely at Oudenarde, 
 as he did later at Dettingen. Even their enemies never 
 accused either George of want of courage. 
 
 He succeeded his father as Elector of Hanover in the 
 last year of the seventeenth century, and was ver>' much 
 beloved in his own hereditary dominions. Q^^d 
 These he was ver>^ slow to leave when he Elector, 
 heard that the English crown had fallen to him ; and 
 when he did arrive in England he was never popular with 
 the English people. They looked upon him as a neces- 
 sity, and perhaps were even thankful to him for saving 
 them from the Pretender and French influence Unpopular ; 
 in England, but how could they love a king ^°"lk°°' 
 who could not speak a word of their language ! English. 
 Sir Robert Walpole, who was Prime- Minister during the 
 greater part of his reign, could not speak German, so 
 that the conversations between the sovereign and his 
 minister were carried on in bad Latin. George I., like 
 William III., was never happy in England, and always 
 rejoiced when he could return to Herrenhausen, as his 
 palace near Hanover was called. His 
 manners in public were cold and phleg- ^^'''S™'^*=* 
 matic, but it is said that in private he could be very 
 sociable. Over his private life there hung a great cloud. 
 
 N 2 
 
1 80 The Age of A nnc. a. d. i 7 14. 
 
 When only just of age he had married Sophia Dorothea, 
 daughter of the Duke of Zell; but, finding her guilty ot 
 unfaithfulness, he caused her to be shut 
 His wife. ^^p .j^ ^ ^^astle in the midst of a desolate 
 heath from the name of which she was called the 
 * Princess of Ahlden.' For twenty-eight years she was 
 shut up in this dreary place, surrounded by soldiers with 
 drawn swords whenever she went forth. She died shortly 
 before the king, whom she is said to have summoned to 
 meet her at God's throne. 
 
 George I. was not liked in England, and his private 
 life was not fair to behold, but he did not prove a bad 
 king for the country. His mother's doubt 
 S England, about him was unfounded; so far from de- 
 siring to be despotic, he left the English people alone to 
 crovern themselves. His reign was a time of peace, a 
 peace policy being emphatically that which the king as 
 well as Walpole and his supporters, wished to pursue. The 
 material prosperity of the country went forward with 
 great strides during the thirty years v.hich followed the 
 accession of the House of Hanover. * Happy,' says the 
 proverb ' is the nation that has no history.' This interval 
 seems barren in our annals, but on that very account it 
 was doubtless a better time for people to live in. In all 
 other reigns, from William III. to Victoria, the National 
 Debt has increased— it was the glory of George I.'s reign 
 that in it alone the debt was diminished. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 END OF LEWIS XIV. 
 
 Lewis XIV. died September i, 1715. just thirteen 
 months after the death of Queen Anne. He was seventy- 
 
 A.D. 1715- 
 
 End of Lrduis XI V, 
 
 181 
 
 seven years of age, and had reigned for the enormous 
 number of seventy-two years. His reign began in May 
 1643. It was just one month before John Le^isxiv. 
 Hampden fell mortally wounded in the EveMsin 
 skirmish in Chalgrove Field. Lewis was nomi- paraUei with 
 nally reigning over France soon after the '" ' ""■ 
 Great Rebellion began in England. He lived to see its 
 principles triumph in the Commonwealth, and fall at the 
 Restoration, to see them reasserted in a more moderate 
 and therefore more durable form in the Glorious Revolu- 
 tion. Of these principles he had been the determined 
 enemy, as he bad been constant to the cause of the 
 Stuarts. But this enmity and this support had cost him 
 dear, and in his old age Lewis acknowledged the prin- 
 ciples of constitutional government as finally triumphant 
 by the recognition of Queen Anne which he made in 
 the Treaty of Utrecht, and in the peaceful recognition 
 which he so soon afterwards accorded to the House of 
 
 Hanover. 
 
 The last years of Lewis were clouded and overcast 
 Beyond the precincts of the Court were disaster and de- 
 feat, which during the whole war of the Troubles at 
 succession had been his portion, an empty the end. 
 treasury and an exhausted country. Famine had done 
 its work, driving men into the army from sheer impos- 
 sibility of obtaining food. In his family relations the 
 king had grievous trouble, blow coming after blow upon 
 his unfortunate head. In 171 1 sickness raged through 
 Europe. The same epidemic of small-pox p^ath of 
 which served to bring the war to an end, by Dauphin. 
 the death of the Emperor Joseph at Vienna, proved also 
 fatal in Paris to Lewis the Dauphin, a man of fifty. He 
 had not indeed played a very important part Duke of 
 in the Court, but he was heir to the throne. Burgundy. 
 His eldest son, the Duke of Burgundy, the elder brother of 
 
I82 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1715. 
 
 the King of Spain, was a prince of whom high hopes were 
 entertained. Great care had been taken with his educa- 
 tion, and that of his brothers, the superintendence of 
 which had been entrusted to Fdnelon, afterwards Arch- 
 bishop of Cambray, a man famous ahke for learning and 
 His educa- ^°^ ^^ gentleness of his character. The Duke 
 don. of Burgundy was Fenelon's favourite pupil, 
 
 and the one whose character he had been able to mould 
 most nearly after the pattern of his own. F^nelon's 
 famous romance, the * Adventures of Telemachus,* was 
 written to serve as a model for this young prince. Its 
 author did not wish to publish the book, but a servant 
 stole a copy from which it was printed. Passages in it, 
 finding fault by implication with matters in France, were 
 too outspoken for the Court of Lewis, and the work was 
 for a time suppressed. But F(5nelon hoped that the 
 princely virtues which he had inculcated would not so 
 readily pass from the mind of his pupil. Three years 
 before his father's death the Duke of Burgundy was in 
 the field, the nominal commander of the French troops 
 before Oudenarde. Want of harmony between him and 
 Marshal Vendome may be considered as one of the chief 
 reasons of the loss of the battle there fought. He 
 married the daughter of Victor Amadeus, of Savoy, his 
 brother the king of Spain marrying her sister. The 
 Duchess of Burgundy was a graceful, winning princess, 
 the life of the whole Court and the especial darling of 
 the old king. But in less than a year after the death of 
 the Dauphin, the Duchess of Burgundy was carried off 
 Death of by malignant fever ; and within a week 
 Duke and ^^^ husband fell a victim to the same dis- 
 
 Duchess of , . , , 1-1 J 1 • 
 
 Burgundy. ease. Then their eldest son died ; and their 
 second son, Lewis, Duke of Anjou, was now heir to the 
 throne. 
 
 A.D. 1715- 
 
 End of Lewis XIV. 
 
 LEWIS XIII. = Anne of Austria, 
 d. 1643. 
 
 183 
 
 Lewis XIV. 
 d. 1715- 
 
 Lewis the Dauphin, 
 
 d. 1711. 
 
 Henrietta Maria, = Philip, = Charlotte 
 dau. of Charles Duke of Elizabeth, 
 I. of England. Orleans, dau. of Charles, 
 d. 1701. Elector Palatine. 
 
 Philip, 
 
 Duke of Orleans (Regent of 
 
 France, 171 5-1723). 
 
 Lewis, = Mary Ade- Philip V. , 
 
 Duke of 
 
 Burgundy, 
 
 d. 1712. 
 
 laide, of 
 Savoy, 
 d. 1712. 
 
 King of Spain. 
 
 Charles, 
 
 Duke of 
 
 Berry, 
 
 d. I7I4- 
 
 Duke of 
 Brittany, 
 d. 1712. 
 
 Lewis XV. 
 succ. 1715. <*• 1774- 
 
 Lewis the Dauphin, 
 d. 1765. 
 
 Lewis XVI. = Mary 
 d. 1793. Antoinette. 
 
 Phi 
 
 ip. 
 
 Lewis PhiUp^ 
 (Egalit£). d. 1793- 
 
 Lewis Philip, 
 King of the French, 
 
 1830-1848. 
 
 On these losses in the royal family of France followed 
 the Peace of Utrecht, which Lewis survived a little more 
 than two years. His great-grandson sue- Lewis XV. 
 ceededhim. Born in 1 710, he was now five Contrast. 
 years old. Lewis XIV. also had been five when he 
 succeeded to the throne : but what a contrast the begm- 
 ning and close of that long reign presents, and what a 
 lesson does the contrast read upon the hollowness which 
 its so-called magnificence hid ? Lewis had succeeded to 
 a throne with power consolidated by wise government. 
 He had squandered its resources in the attempt to ex- 
 tend that power and to prop up falling causes. He pos- 
 sessed all the externals of a king, but he was lacking m 
 the true vurtues of a ruler. His condemnation is that 
 he left France exhausted, and that under him her people 
 
 r 
 
1 84 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1 715. 
 
 ii| 
 ill' 
 
 endured years of misery. In all the reign that followed, 
 since true statesmen v/ere wanting, there was no recovery 
 from this wretchedness. In Lewis XIV.'s despotism, 
 misgovernment, and cruel persecution of the Huguenots, 
 the seeds of the Revolution were sown. When the Cami- 
 sards were being tortured, the drummers played. Drums 
 were beaten also when Lewis the Great's own descendant 
 perished by the guillotine. 
 
 No sooner had the old king closed his eyes in death, 
 than there passed through France a sigh of relief, one 
 To at d ath "^^^^^^ almost Say a cry of delight. Whatever 
 of Lewis the future might be, men thought that it 
 
 could not be as bitter as the past. Nobles 
 banished from the Court were glad to return ; men of 
 religious creeds not tolerated in it again held up their 
 heads. The power of the Jesuits was thought to have 
 passed away ; so that even the late king's Jesuit con- 
 fessor was hardly safe from the popular fury. 
 
 The new king was five years old. Who then was to 
 govern the country during his infancy ? Of the princes 
 Who shall °^ ^^ blood royal, the nearest akin to him, 
 he regent ? except the King of Spain, was Philip, Duke 
 of Orleans, a man of considerable ability, but unscru- 
 pulous, an avowed infidel, and of dissolute life. The last 
 years of Lewis XIV. had been embittered with the 
 thought that this man, his nephew, was the rightful regent 
 to his grandson. He had therefore made a will, by which 
 a Council of Regency was appointed, with the Duke of 
 Orleans as president, for in France at least the here- 
 ditary principle must not be entirely set aside ; Lewis 
 however, even when drawing his will up, did not deceive 
 himself as to its value. * As soon as I am dead,' said he, 
 ' they will put it aside. I know too well what was done 
 with my own father's will.' 
 
 His prophecy came true. The Duke of Orleans be- 
 
 End of Lewis XIV, 
 
 185 
 
 A.D. 1715- 
 
 came regent without any council to limit his power. His 
 policy also was in many respects a reversal of that of 
 the old king. He formed a close alliance with ^^^^^ ^ 
 England, under George I. and his Whig minis- O-l'poHcy 
 ters, and a little later with Holland against 
 Spain, whose king disputed his title to the regency. The 
 duke caused strict investigation to be made into the 
 finances, and often by harsh and unjustifiable measures 
 materially reduced the burden on the country. But the 
 reign of Lewis XV. had received from its predecessor too 
 vast a heritage of disorder, and before its distant close 
 it was marked by terrible and costly wars, and by mis- 
 government greater than the nation could endure. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 THE FRAGMENTS THAT REMAIN. 
 
 There are several who have played parts more or less 
 important in this histoiy, and whose later careers we 
 must follow to an end before parting with them. 
 
 The great Duke of Marlborough had lived in dignified 
 retirement on the Continent during all the latter part of 
 the queen's reign. Hearing that the queen j^^j^^of 
 was not likely to live, he made preparations Mari-^^ 
 to return to England. Having been for some 
 time detained by contrar>^ winds at Ostend, on landing 
 at Dover he received the news of the queen's death and 
 of the quiet accession of the new^ sovereign. When 
 George I. reinstated the Whigs in office, Marlborough 
 was made captain-general or commander-in-chief of the 
 army. In that capacity he superintended the military 
 arrangements that suppressed the rising of 1715. A 
 little later he suffered from a severe attack of paralysis, 
 
 II 
 
1 86 
 
 TJie Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1713- 
 
 but not such as to hinder his attendance in the 
 House of Lords and the performance of official duties. 
 In 1722 he died, and was honoured with a splendid 
 funeral in Westminster Abbey. The Duchess of Marl- 
 borough survived her husband many years, and died at 
 the advanced age of eighty-four. She occupied herself 
 in drawing up a vindication of the duke's conduct and 
 her own, which offers valuable material to the historian. 
 
 In the treaty of Utrecht, the interests of one people 
 had been shamefully neglected by the aUies. The people 
 The Cata- °^ Catalonia had taken up arms at the insti- 
 lonians. gation of the English, especially of Lord 
 
 Peterborough. They had fought valiantly for the cause 
 of the Austrian claimant. But in the negotiations the 
 allies deserted them. When the English made peace 
 they withdrew the remnant of their troops from Barce- 
 lona. When the emperor continued the war by him- 
 self, in order to concentrate his forces he was obliged 
 to withdraw his soldiers also. The King of Spain was 
 about to treat them as subdued rebels. But the in- 
 habitants determined to resist to the uttermost. They 
 fought valiantly, and gallantly defended Barcelona ; but 
 the Spanish king was able to procure French soldiers, 
 and the services of Marshal Berwick ; and thus the heroic 
 resistance was in vain. In the September after the death 
 of Queen Anne, Barcelona was stormed and taken. 
 
 By the treaty of Utrecht, Victor Amadeus, Uuke of 
 Savoy, was made King of Sicily. Five years later, 
 Sicily was exchanged for Sardinia. His de- 
 scendants remained kings of Sardinia, until 
 in our own time the title was merged in the 
 greater title of King of Italy. During this 
 period of peace he displayed as great talents 
 for administration of his kingdom as he had previously 
 shown for war. 
 
 Victor 
 Amadeus, 
 Duke of 
 Savoy and 
 King of 
 Sicily, then 
 of Sardinia. 
 
 >A.D. 1740. The Fragments that remain. 187 
 
 In 1730 he determined to abdicate in favour of 
 Charles Emanuel, his only surviving son. By no means 
 an able man, Charles had hitherto been kept ^^^ ^bdica- 
 at a distance by his father, who frequently "«"• 
 avowed his dislike of him. 
 
 A little more than a year after his father's abdication, 
 the new King of Sardinia held a meeting of his council, 
 at which it was decided that the old king should be 
 placed under arrest. He was very harshly treated, 
 soldiers being sent in the night-time, who tore him from 
 his wife and hurried him away to prison. In a little 
 more than a year again, he died in confinement. It was 
 said that he had shown a desire to regain the crown 
 which he had surrendered, but he had no force at his 
 disposal, and there is no evidence that the charge was 
 true. He really fell a victim to the ambition of a minister 
 who wished to establish a greater influence over the 
 
 young king. 
 
 In Spain a singular act of abdication took place. 
 Philip, who remained king as the result of the War of 
 Succession, abdicated in 1 724 in favour of his Mip v. 
 son, and retired to a monastery, but upon Hisabdica- 
 his son's death in the next year resumed lion. 
 power, though professing that it was against his will. 
 
 It remains to give an account of the other and un- 
 successful claimant of the Spanish crown, whom we have 
 known as Archduke Charles, and after the -^he Em- 
 death of his brother. Emperor. He never peror 
 could be induced quite to give up his claim 
 on Spain, and the result was that he was never on good 
 terms with that country. But his later history is chiefly 
 famous on account of the war that ensued upon his death. 
 He had no son that lived beyond infancy, but he had a 
 daughter, the beautiful and famous Maria Theresa. On 
 this account he prepared a document called the Pragmatic 
 
188 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 Sanction (a name given to certain very important State 
 documents), by which he decreed that, faihng male issue, 
 his daughter was to succeed to his hereditary dominions. 
 To securing promises of adhesion to this Pragmatic Sanc- 
 tion, Charles seems to have devoted all the energies of 
 the last fifteen years of his hfe. His diplomacy seemed 
 successful ; but when he died in 1740, the promises were 
 not kept, and a tedious war arose, England taking the 
 part of Maria Theresa, France and Prussia supporting 
 the Duke of Bavaria against her. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL. 
 
 Section L— Population. Towns. Architecture. 
 
 Before we consider the social and economic condition 
 of the people of England in the reign of Queen Anne, it 
 would be advisable to discover how many 
 Population. people there were. Unfortunately there is 
 no census to guide us, as it was not until the beginning 
 of this centur>^ that statesmen had the wisdom to require 
 an accurate calculation on which taxation could be based. 
 The elements for an estimate are twofold. First, we 
 know the number of houses that paid the hearth tax, 
 which might have been called a house tax, for it was a 
 certain sum from every house ; and we can multiply that 
 by what is known to be the average number of inmates 
 of a house, viz. five. Secondly, there was a register of 
 deaths, and a calculation can be based upon the average 
 rate of mortality. This information is not as precise as 
 a census, and the calculations make the population of 
 
 Economic mid Social 
 
 189 
 
 -A.D. I7H- 
 
 England and Wales vary between five and seven millions. 
 It is now about twenty-four millions. He was a wise 
 man who wrote — 
 
 It is not growing like a tree 
 
 In bulk, doth make man tetter be ; 
 
 and a country is not to be considered as necessarily in a 
 better condition because its population has mcreased ; 
 on the contrary, its condition is worse, unless the growth 
 has been proportionate in other respects. 
 
 Of the whole population of England and Wales one- 
 tenth was at that time included within London, but with 
 that exception the country had a very much Q^^^xxy 
 larger share than the towns. Bristol, the next rather than 
 town in population, was only one-seventeenth 
 of London, and many towns which were considered of im- 
 portance had populations which would now bethought very 
 small During the period from Queen Anne's time to our 
 own the growth of manufactures has been continually 
 drawing the people from the country into towns. If a line 
 be drawn from the mouth of the Severn to the junction of 
 Ouse and Trent, where the river Humber commences, one 
 might sav that, roughly speaking, it would now divide 
 the manufacturing from the agricultural parts of the 
 country, that with the exception of London the great 
 towns lie to the north and west of the Une, and that the 
 preponderance of political power rests with them. With 
 equal confidence one might assert that in Queen Annes 
 time this line separated the important from the unim- 
 portant parts of England, all that lay to the north and 
 west being comparatively unimportant. , , , , 
 
 The facilities of locomotion which have helped the 
 growth of manufactures, brought about, first, by the 
 improvement in roads, then in coaches and waggons, 
 lastly in railways, have also conspired to send the country 
 
190 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 people into the towns, have emptied the small into the 
 larger towns, have in favour of London destroyed the 
 social prestige of country capitals, and of towns which 
 were social centres of large districts. The following may 
 T^«nrt,nt be regarded as a list of the chief English 
 
 Important ^ ^ i • i j r It. • 
 
 towns. towns, after London, m the order ot tneir 
 
 importance, during Queen Anne's reign :— Bristol, the 
 chief sea-port ; Norwich, the largest manufacturing city ; 
 York, the capital of the northern counties ; Exeter, the 
 capital of the western district ; Shrewsbury, of the 
 counties along the Welsh border, and well situated for 
 intercourse with Wales ; Worcester, in which the porce- 
 lain manufacture was beginning to rise. To these would 
 have to be added Derby, Nottingham, Canterbury. 
 
 The population of London was then about 700,000, 
 that is, one-tenth of that of England and Wales. Modem 
 London, with all its suburbs, in the widest 
 London. circuit that is called London, that is to say, 
 
 the postal districts, covers a much larger area, and 
 contains about 4,000,000 inhabitants. This makes it 
 considerably more than one-tenth of the United Kingdom, 
 and one-sixth of England and Wales, so that if the growth 
 has been remarkable elsewhere, it has been portentous in 
 London. The earlier growth had been noticed, and had 
 caused concern to the Government. In the reign of 
 Elizabeth, and under the Stuart kings, building had been 
 prohibited. But it was found impossible to stop the 
 growth of London ; it would have been as practicable to 
 stop a tree from putting out its branches and its leaves. 
 A great calamity befell London in the reign of Charles IL 
 It was burnt down ; but far from checking the growth, 
 this only made room for a fresh start. Here was an 
 opportunity to built the city anew on a systematic plan, 
 and the Government of the day commissioned the greatest 
 living architect, Sir Christopher Wren, to draw up such 
 
 _A.D. 1714- 
 
 Economic and Social, 
 
 191 
 
 a plan for the city. This can still be seen, with his own 
 Cathedral of St. Paul's standing in a free space in the 
 centre, broad wide streets leading from it, spacious 
 squares at due intervals, wide and convenient quays 
 along the banks of the Thames ; but, building in accord- 
 ance with the plans not being strictly enforced, the oppor- 
 tunity was lost. 
 
 London was built hastily after the fire, and many con- 
 veniences which are now thought necessary, and which 
 might have been supplied had a little more ^^^^^ ^^ 
 time been taken, were neglected. Not only 
 were the streets narrow and irregular, but there was no 
 arrangements for sewers, and there were no gutters to 
 the streets. The police service also was ver>^ bad ; 'the 
 watch ' was wholly insufficient in numbers, and was com- 
 posed chiefly of old men. The streets were badly lighted 
 of a night, and it was quite easy for anyone bent on mis- 
 chief to overpower the watch. Of course thieves and 
 robbers availed themselves of the power ; but others 
 also, who should have known better, took occasion not 
 to rob but to riot. Young men of birth and fashion used 
 to form themselves into clubs, banded together for the 
 sole purpose of creating disturbances. The most fashion- 
 able of these, the Mohawks, were a terror to all peace- 
 loving citizens, their name being taken from the wild 
 tribe of North American Indians. An ancient writer 
 mentions it as a sign of progress in civilisation w^hen 
 men cease to wear swords. This stage had not been 
 reached in Queen Anne's reign, when the young bucks 
 and dandies of society were always ready to draw their 
 rapiers, and the honest citizens had to arm themselves 
 with bludgeons. 
 
 The London of Queen Anne's day consisted of two 
 parts, then more distinct than now, the City and West- 
 minster. The space between them was not built over. 
 
 
 lil 
 
192 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 -A.I>. I714. 
 
 Economic and Social. 
 
 193 
 
 But London proper, what is strictly called the City, was 
 no longer sufficient to contain all the inhabitants, and 
 The City and fashionable life had already begun that move- 
 Westmin- ment to the West which is so remarkable 
 a feature in the history of London. The 
 fashionable quarters then were the neighbourhood of Great 
 Ormond Street and Queen's Square. To the West lay 
 Kensington, a separate village where was King William's 
 Palace. Both London and Westminster may be said 
 each to have had two centres, one secular and the other 
 ecclesiastical : London, the Exchange and St. Paul's ; 
 Westminster, the Parliament Houses and the Abbey, or 
 Minster, whence the place had its name. 
 
 The Exchange was the commercial centre, and in- 
 deed may be said at this time to have become the centre 
 The Ex- of the commerce of the world. I n the M iddle 
 
 lSXu?"'^ Ages Venice was the centre of the world's 
 commerce. trade. The invention of the compass took 
 away this supremacy from Venice, as mariners were no 
 longer confined to coasting voyages. The extreme com- 
 mercial activity of the Netherlands next made Bruges 
 and Antwerp the centre, and they retained this supre- 
 macy during the Reformation period. The persecution 
 of the Protestants by the Spanish Government, and the 
 fierce fighting which followed the Revolt of the Nether- 
 lands, destroyed this. Commerce was driven from Ant- 
 werp through the long siege by the Duke of Parma, 
 which ended in the year that followed Elizabeth's death. 
 During the next century, the seventeenth, the supremacy 
 of trade lay between Amsterdam and London, the former 
 having the best of it until the English Civil War was 
 over ; but in the latter half of the century London was 
 beginning to prevail. The commercial rivalry between 
 the English and the Dutch was very keen, and their 
 commerce was nearly equal ; but the pahn was slowly 
 
 though surely passing to England. Tyre in F^nelon's 
 < Ta^maque,' is supposed to be Amsterdam; but if he had 
 written a quarter of a century later he would probably 
 have described London. The following passage from the 
 * Spectator ' gives Addison's picture of the Exchange, 
 which, it must be remembered, is neither the Exchange 
 that now is, nor that originally built by Sir Thomas 
 Gresham, but the second, namely, that which was built 
 after the Great Fire, and which was itself destroyed by 
 fire in 1838 : — 
 
 * There is no place in the Town which I so much love 
 to frequent as the Royal Exchange. It gives me a secret 
 Satisfaction, and in some measure gratifies my Vanity, as 
 I am an Englishman, to see so rich an Assembly of 
 Countr}^men and Foreigners consulting together upon 
 the private Business of Mankind, and making this Metro- 
 polis a kind of Emporium for the whole Earth. I must 
 confess I look upon High Change to be a great Council, 
 in which all considerable Nations have their Representa- 
 tives. ... I have often been pleased to hear Disputes ad- 
 justed between an Inhabitant of Japan and an Alderman 
 of London, or to see a Subject of the Great Mogul 
 entering into a League with one of the Czar of Muscovy.' 
 The only art that realh- flourished in Queen Anne's 
 time was Architecture, and that because England hap- 
 pened to possess an architect of consummate j^ , . 
 genius. Sir Christopher Wren was a man of ture. 
 great attainments, being especially learned ^'^ ^' ^'"*"' 
 in astronomy and in mechanics, and one of the first 
 members of the Royal Society founded in the reign of 
 Charles II. He was as modest as he was learned, arid 
 perhaps would have been treated with more respect in 
 that age if he had more firmly asserted his own rights. 
 He was not especially educated for the profession of an 
 architect, but when he was appointed king's surveyor he 
 .V. //. o 
 
 
194 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 St. Paul's. 
 
 at once showed himself a master of the art. With all 
 the architects of his day, he evidently preferred the 
 classical style. Before the Fire, he was asked to restore 
 old St. Paul's, which was in the Gothic style, and he did 
 add some towers to Westminster Abbey, which are 
 amongst his least successful productions. But whilst 
 the question of the restoration of St. Paul's 
 was being debated, and the battle of the 
 styles being fought, the Great Fire put an end to the 
 controversy. St. Paul's is Wren's greatest work, though 
 some say that the church of St. Stephen's, Walbrook^ 
 is a more perfect specimen of his art. It was a dean 
 of St. Paul's that wrote of the Cathedral : ' What eye, 
 trained to all that is perfect in architecture, does not 
 recognise the inimitable beauty of its lines, the majestic 
 yet airy swelling of its dome, its rich, harmonious orna- 
 mentation ? ' 
 
 As the subscriptions for the rebuilding of St. Paul's 
 did not come in fast enough, Parliament voted that a 
 portion of the duty on coals should be applied 
 to the purpose. The total cost of the cathe- 
 dral was 747,661/. \os, sd. The first stone was laid in 
 Wren's presence, June 21, 1675, the nine years since the 
 fire having been spent in making designs, and the highest 
 stone of the lantern in the cupola was also set by his son 
 in his presence in 1710. It is rare in the history of great 
 buildings, especially of cathedrals, that they should be 
 finished in the lifetime of the original architect. Indeed, 
 it was a marvel both on account of its cheapness, and 
 because of 'the short time in which it was built. After 
 the completion of the cathedral, it was voted by the 
 Parliament in 171 1 that fifty new churches should be 
 built, and that the portion of the coal duty which had 
 been expended on St. Paul's should be appUed to that 
 purpose. It is not known how many of these churches 
 
 Cost. 
 
 -A.D. 1 7 14. 
 
 Economic and Social. 
 
 195 
 
 were actually built. Yet we may say that most of the 
 London churches, built since the Fire, are of Wren's 
 designing. Fault is found with him because 
 his churches are not Gothic, an objection ^"^"'"tv^^- 
 which seems to imply that there is only one order of 
 ecclesiastical architecture, and surely narrows the art ; 
 and also because he mixed the styles in putting steeples 
 which are a feature of Gothic architecture, over buildings', 
 and especially over porticoes, in the Greek style. The 
 defence is this, that architecture having had its full 
 development, and absolutely new invention being impos- 
 sible, the originality of a modern architect consists in 
 skilful composition and harmonious proportions. If the 
 combination does not offend the eye, it is pedantry to 
 object that it runs counter to the traditions of the art. 
 
 By way of contrast with Sir C. Wren, it may be well 
 to mention another architect of the day. Sir John Van- 
 brugh had distinguished himself as a writer c- t u 
 ofvery coarse comic dramas. As men used Vanbrugh. 
 to change from soldier to sailor, so Sir J. Vanbrugh 
 became an architect. He built his own house out of the 
 ruins of Whitehall. A brother architect compared it to 
 *a flat Dutch oven,' and Swift has a funny little poem 
 about the house, describing everyone as hunting for it up 
 and down the river banks and unable to find it, until at 
 length they did— 
 
 In the rubbish spy 
 A thing resembling a goose-pie. 
 
 This was the architect who was chosen to build for a 
 grateful nation, at an expense of half a million pounds, 
 Blenheim Palace, near Woodstock, to be presented to 
 the victorious Duke of Marlborough. It is imposing 
 chiefly on account of its size, but the style is very heavy, 
 and justifies the epigram written on the architect : 
 
 o 2 
 
196 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A,D. 1702- 
 
 -A.D. 1 7 14. 
 
 Economic and Social. 
 
 197 
 
 Lie heavy on him, earth, for he 
 Laid many a heavy load on thee. 
 
 The immense improvement in one city should be 
 mentioned, because it began within this period. Bath 
 was known as a watering-place as long ago 
 ^^^^' as the Roman occupation of Britain. It 
 
 seems always to have preserved its reputation, but it was 
 so uncomfortable that no one cared to stay there, unless 
 for the purposes of health. In the first year of Queen 
 Anne's reign a man of fashion— one Richard Nash, nick- 
 named Beau Nash— paid it a visit, as some say, in order 
 to replenish a purse emptied by gambling, as weU as to 
 mend health broken by dissipation. He at once set to 
 work to increase the cheerfulness of the place, and to 
 provide amusement for those who resorted to it. His 
 genius for organization was quickly recognised, and he 
 was appointed Master of the Ceremonies in 1704. From 
 that time, for a period of nearly fifty years, he may be 
 described as king of Bath, whilst squares and terraces, 
 pump-rooms and public buildings, rose almost like magic ; 
 till under his auspices Bath became the well-ordered 
 city that it now is, deserving, with its magnificent situa- 
 tion, the title of the queen of watering-places. 
 
 Section II.— The Poor. Statistics. 
 
 It seems advisable to collect under one head some 
 scattered information on the history of the English poor. 
 
 Under the feudal system the poor man was a 
 th?p^r.° serf. The difference between a slave and a 
 
 serf is that the former is a personal chattel 
 and might be sold, the latter could not be sold away from 
 the estate, but had no personal hberty. He was not able 
 to move from the place where he was bom, and he was 
 obliged to serve one particular lord. In A.D. 1346 came 
 
 the pestilence known as the Black Death, which cut off 
 half the labouring population of England, and by a well- 
 known economic law raised the position of ^^^^ 
 those that were left, because as there were Death. 
 fewer labourers their services were more in demand. 
 The result was that Parliament passed the Statute of 
 Labourers to compel the labourer to work for certain 
 wages. That the position of the labourers was improved 
 is shown by the fact that their class, under Walter the 
 tiler and others, raised an insurrection at the opening of 
 the next reign, a thing which their grandsires would never 
 have dreamt of doing. 
 
 The next great event in the history of the poor was 
 the suppression of the monasteries. There can be no 
 doubt that the monasteries supphed bed and e 
 board to those who asked, thus conferring a cK™ 
 great blessing on those who could not, and '*"**" 
 an equally great bane on the idle who would not, work. 
 The suppression of these religious houses in the reign of 
 Henry VIII. had the effect of letting a flood of poor loose 
 upon society ; and its necessary resultsj may be seen in 
 two Acts of Parliament — the first Poor Law and the first 
 Statute of Vagrants. 
 
 The statute against vagrants in Henry VIII.'s reign 
 enacted that the * sturdy and valiant ' beggar, the man 
 who can work and will not, was to be whipped statute of 
 at the cart's tail ; the statute of Elizabeth Vagrants, 
 enacted that he was to be whipped and branded in the 
 ear, that whoever liked might put a collar on him and 
 make him a servant ; the statute of Charles II., that he 
 should be transported to the English plantations beyond 
 the seas. In Queen Anne's reign a statute was passed 
 that beggars should be put into the army, and as soldiers 
 were well paid, they should certainly have felt that this 
 was kind treatment. 
 
 
 ^ 
 
1 98 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 Poor Law. 
 
 The Poor Law of Henry VIII. was modified in the 
 reign of Elizabeth, but the statute then passed lasted 
 until the great Reform Bill. Churchwardens 
 and overseers were to * provide work, build 
 poor-houses, and apprentice paupers.' 
 
 It is generally allowed that what the poor can fairly 
 claim is relief for the sick and the infirm, who cannot 
 work, and work for those who are able-bodied, but who 
 are absolutely unable to find it. It is with the latter in 
 view that what used to be called the poor-house is now 
 called the work-house. The work-house should not be 
 made too comfortable, because men should be taught that 
 they ought to support themselves, and not be supported 
 Pauperism by Others. In Queen Anne's reign there were 
 in Queen 1^330,000 paupers, or nearly one in five of 
 reign. the whole population. Men often complain, 
 
 now-a-days, of the burden of pauperism ; but the propor- 
 tion of paupers has very much diminished. In the year 
 1873 there were, in round numbers, 890,000. It is thought 
 that this number is too large, and with discreet measures 
 can, and will be, reduced. Yet this is only one in twenty- 
 seven of the population. Side by side with this calcula- 
 tion one must, however, place .the cost. The paupers of 
 Queen Anne's reign cost 900,000/. in the year, or about 
 14J. apiece, whilst the poor rate in 1873 amounted to 
 13,000,000/., or 14/. apiece. Now, the decrease in the 
 value of money since that time is not nearly in the ratio 
 of one to twenty. This shows, therefore, that the pauper 
 is more expensively housed and cared for in the present 
 day, and probably, also, that he is a more permanent 
 charge ; for the pauper of Queen Anne's day can only 
 have been at times * upon the parish,' as the 145-. would 
 not suffice to keep him more than a third of the year. As 
 some must have been permanently upon the parish, 
 others, who were but a temporary charge must be 
 included in the calculation. 
 
 -A.D. 1714- 
 
 Economic and Social, 
 
 199 
 
 There is no doubt that the value of money has con- 
 siderably decreased since the reign of Anne, but it is not 
 easy to find the exact figure by which our money should 
 be multiplied. It is said that the price of a sheep was 
 75-., and of an ox 2/. This would make meat rather less 
 than a penny a pound. The same observer says that 
 2/. 5^. would keep a labouring man in food for a year. 
 But prices varied from year to year much more than they 
 vary now, because the country was much more depen- 
 dent on its own harvest than it is now. In the present 
 day so much corn is imported, that the deficiency of an 
 English harvest can be made up, without a great or 
 sudden change in general prices. The fluctuations in the 
 price of wheat were remarkable : at 56^". 6//. a quarter in 
 1699, it went down to 25^. bd. after the abundant harvest 
 of 1702. There was a deficient harvest next year, and 
 prices doubled. In 1706 again we are told that the 
 kingdom was blessed with plenty, and the people cheer- 
 fully contributed to the expenses of the war. But the 
 winter of 1708 in England, as in France, was terribly 
 severe ; it was noticed that the wheat was all destroyed 
 on the north-east side of the furrows, a fact which points 
 to the prevalence of cutting north-east winds. Wages 
 averaged about lod. a day. The pay of a soldier was 
 Zd.^ whereas the French soldier only had 3^. A pri- 
 vate in the present day receives is. 2d., besides barrack- 
 room, pension, and facilities for buying food cheaper. 
 The labourer probably had better wages, but he had 
 no facilities for saving beyond an old stocking. There 
 were no investments open to him, and no savings 
 bank. 
 
 England and Wales may be said roughly to consist of 
 thirty-seven million acres ; and a glance at The land. 
 the following table will show how these acres were and 
 are distributed : — 
 
200 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 Corn. 
 
 Wool. 
 
 Then. Now. 
 
 Arable .... 9 — i4i 
 
 Meadow (including park) . 12 — 12 
 
 Woods .... 6 — 2 
 
 Unfit for cultivation . . 10 — 8| 
 
 The staple produce of England was corn. The popula- 
 tion being so much smaller, and, at the same time, a 
 larger part of it being employed in agriculture, 
 the country was easily able to supply her 
 own needs of wheat. 
 
 The second produce was wool. England had long 
 been a wool-growing countr>' ; her meadows were famous 
 for the breed of sheep ; her chancellor sat 
 upon the woolsack. But it had been the 
 custom to send all the wool over to the Continent to be 
 manufactured. Many English statesmen had regretted 
 this, but the wool still went over. Then came small 
 beginnings of the cloth manufacture in England. Edward 
 III. had imported families of cloth-workers from the 
 Netherlands ; and it is said that, in his reign, the name 
 ' worsted ' was given to the yarn made from spun wool, 
 after a small town of that name in Norfolk. In order to 
 foster the manufacture in England, various statutes were 
 made to encourage the natives to exclude the foreign 
 cloth : in 1696 the latter was absolutely prohibited, and 
 in the reign of Charles II. it had been decreed that 
 everyone was to be buried in woollen cloth. In old 
 church registers one may find the entry, * buried in wool,' 
 Further, Irish wool was prohibited, and not only Irish 
 wool but Irish linen. Of course Englishmen could not 
 complain when the same protective policy was repeated 
 in another country, and British as well as Irish woollen 
 goods absolutely pr'>hibited in France. Of the English 
 manufacture Leeds was already the centre, but it was 
 
 -A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Economic and Social, 
 
 201 
 
 Cotton. 
 
 a town of very different size from the Leeds of to-day. 
 Its population is now thirty-seven times as large. But 
 in our days the woollen manufacture is only the third 
 of English manufactures — that of cotton being about 
 two and a half times as large, and iron standing second. 
 
 Cotton was then beginning to raise its head, and the 
 policy that had always discouraged all rivals to English 
 wool was repeated. A statute was passed in 
 1700 (the year in which Charles II. of Spain 
 died), prohibiting the importation of cotton goods, such 
 as Indian muslins and chintzes. The competition, how- 
 ever, most to be feared was not the manufactured goods, 
 but the fibre imported from America to be made in Eng- 
 land into goods ; and that business must have assumed 
 some dimensions when, in 1701, cotton goods worth 
 23,000/. were exported. The amount is now three and 
 a half times as many millions as thousands then. 
 
 Other manufactures were still very young. The coal 
 fields were not largely worked, as coal was only required 
 for domestic purposes. That from Newcastle- Manufac- 
 upon-Tyne was considered the best. Sheffield, t"»*s. 
 famous for its * whittles ' even in Chaucer's time, kept up 
 its reputation for cutlery, though the manufacture was on 
 a small scale. The French refugees who settled in 
 England, and who vexed the Tories because their Pro- 
 testantism was not that of the English Church, introduced 
 several valuable branches of manufacture ; silk weaving 
 was the chief, but to these also must be added, glass, 
 paper, and hats. All the gold and silver came into Europe 
 from America, through Spain, entering by Cadiz, *the 
 golden gate of the Indies.' 
 
 There can be no doubt, as regards the standard of 
 comfort, that the English people were far beyond other 
 European nations. Ambassadors wrote to express as- 
 
202 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 tonishment that the food was so good, that the con- 
 sumption of beer, spirits, and foreign wine was so large, 
 Standard of ^'^^ ^^^^ articles of luxury imported from dis- 
 comfort, tant lands were in such general use. An Eng- 
 lish writer of the time estimates, indeed, that only half the 
 labouring class ate animal food more than twice a week, 
 but in proportion to wages meat was much cheaper then 
 than it is now. The consumption of beer seems enormous. 
 It was calculated that in the year after the Revolution a 
 quart a day was brewed for every man, woman, and child 
 in England ; whereas the same calculation makes the 
 amount in the present day sixty quarts per annum, or just 
 one-sixth. It would not be a fair conclusion that the 
 English are now a more sober people because less beer 
 is drunk, for a great deal that was brewed was very 
 small beer. The majority of the English people have 
 three meals a day — breakfast, dinner, and tea, and it is 
 only at one of these that the larger portion ever touch 
 beer. The choice then lay between wine or spirits, cider, 
 beer, milk, or water. It is to two beverages that have 
 since passed into common use, tea and coffee, 
 that the diminution in the amount of beer 
 is due. Tea, or as it was then always pronounced, tay, 
 
 (And gentle Anna, whom three realms obey, 
 
 Does sometimes counsel take and sometimes tea. — Pope.) 
 
 was first brought into England by the Dutch nearly a cen- 
 tury earlier, but during the whole seventeenth century it 
 was regarded as a rare luxury. Mr. Pepys drank his first 
 cup of tea on September 25, 1661, describing it as — 'A 
 China drink, of which I had never drunk before.' In the 
 reign of Charles II. the East India Company presented 
 the king with two pounds of tea. But during the latter 
 years of the century and through the reign of Queen 
 Anne its use as a beverage was rapidly spreading. We 
 
 -A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Economic and Social, 
 
 203 
 
 Coffee. 
 
 have an estimate of the consumption just after the acces- 
 sion of George 1 1. It amounted in the year to 700,000 lbs., 
 and the price, depending on the quality, varied between 
 thirteen shillings and twenty shillings a pound. The 
 amount imported into England in 1872 was 185,000,000 
 lbs. 
 
 Coffee was making its way at the same time. Coffee 
 was imported from the Levant, which it easily reached 
 from Arabia, its home. It was first brought 
 into England by a Cretan gentleman, who 
 made it his common beverage at Balliol College, Oxford, 
 in the year when the Long Parliament first met. Coffee 
 became a social power earlier than tea. The Greek 
 servant of an English Turkey merchant from Smyrna is 
 said to have started the first coffee-house in London in 
 the time of th^ Commonwealth. About the end of the 
 seventeenth century, coffee-houses were very common, 
 and important as a means of social and political inter- 
 course amongst men. They filled the place that is now 
 filled by the London clubs. Some were chiefly political 
 places of resort for only one party ; others, especially the 
 famous Wills', in Covent Garden, were literar}\ Those 
 who wished to see, to hear, or perhaps to bow to a pro- 
 minent literary man, such as Dryden or Addison, would 
 find him at the coffee-house. These houses had great 
 influence in the formation of opinions. Men now-a-days 
 often take their opinion from their club or their news- 
 paper ; then they took it from the coffee-house. 
 
 On the general question of the far-brought supply of 
 luxuries one may, with advantage, read the ^ 
 following passages from the paper in the 
 ' Spectator ' which begins with the glories of the Ex- 
 change : — 
 
 * Almost every Degree produces something peculiar to 
 it. The Food often grows in one Countr)-, and the Sauce 
 
 Il 
 
ii' 
 
 "Hi 
 
 204 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 in another. The Fruits of Portugal are corrected by the 
 Products of Barbadoes, the Infusion of a China Plant 
 sweetned with the Pith of an Indian Cane. The Philip- 
 pick Islands give a Flavour to our European Bowls. 
 The single Dress of a Woman of Quality is often the Pro- 
 duct of a hundred Climates. The Muff and the Fan come 
 together from the different Ends of the Earth. The Scarf 
 is sent from the Torrid Zone and the Tippet from beneath 
 the Pole. The Brocade Petticoat rises out of the Mines 
 of Peru, and the Diamond Necklace out of the Bowels of 
 Indostan. 
 
 * Our Ships are laden with the Harv^est of every Cli- 
 mate : our Tables are stored with Spices and Oils and 
 Wines : our Rooms are filled with Pyramids of China, and 
 adorned with the Workmanship of Japan : our Morning's 
 Draught comes to us from the remotest Corners of the 
 Earth : ive repair our Bodies by the Drugs of America, 
 and repose ourselves under Indian Canopies. My Friend 
 Sir Andrew calls the Vineyards of France our Gardens : 
 the Spice Islands our Hot-beds : the Persians our Silk- 
 weavers, and the Chinese our Potters.' 
 
 England and Wales consumed eleven milHon pounds 
 of tobacco, and sent on no less than seventeen millions 
 to the Continent, all of which came from the EngUsh 
 plantation in Virginia. 
 
 One other point should be especially noticed — the 
 change in the taste for wine which was brought about 
 during this reign. Since the days of the 
 Black Prince, and earlier, there had been a 
 large English trade with Bordeaux. The favourite wines 
 in England were the French, which passed then, as often 
 Port oust's ^o^> under the general name of claret. In 
 claret. the year before the English Revolution, the 
 
 amount of French wine imported was three and a half 
 times as much as that from Spain and Portugal together. 
 
 Wine. 
 
 -A.D. 1 7 14. 
 
 Eeonomic and Social, 
 
 205 
 
 The Methuen Treaty with Portugal, however, decided that 
 the tax upon Portuguese wines admitted into England 
 should always be one-third less than that on French, for 
 which privilege Portugal was to import no woollen goods 
 but Enghsh. The old Tories, and especially those in Ox- 
 ford Common Rooms, were very strong in favour of their 
 Burgundy, and would gladly have seen the Methuen 
 Treaty cancelled : but the result of that treaty was a 
 change in the pubHc taste ; and for more than a century 
 port reigned supreme, until that in its turn became a sort 
 of emblem of Toryism. One evil followed. The port 
 was much stronger than the claret, but men drank the 
 same quantity with very bad results : a great deal of the 
 hard drinking which distinguished the eighteenth century 
 can fairly be traced to the Methuen Treaty. 
 
 Firm and erect the Caledonian stood ; 
 
 Sweet was his mutton and his claret good. 
 
 •Thou shall drink port,' the English statesman cried ; 
 
 He drank the poison, and his spirit died. 
 
 Section III. — National Debt. 
 
 The account of this time would not be complete with- 
 out some statement of the debt of the country. It was 
 not indeed in this reign that the practice of making pos- 
 terity pay began, but in this reign the practice was 
 vigorously carried on. 
 
 The principle of a National Debt is just the same as 
 that of a debt incurred by a private individual. If some- 
 thing has to be done, the advantage of which q^^^^ 
 is not confined to one year, there is no reason principle of 
 
 Q oebt 
 
 that a man should pay for it out of in- 
 come. It is quite fair to make posterity pay in part for 
 advantages which posterity will enjoy : and circumstances 
 may arise which justify placing part of the burden of a 
 war on the future. Strictly, however, such a war should 
 
206 
 
 Tlu Age of Anne. 
 
 'H 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 be defensive, for in self-defence the nation is defending 
 posterity's freedom as well as its own ; but, with respect 
 to other quarrels, posterity may be expected to have its 
 own. There was a small national debt in England before 
 the Revolution, Charles II. having taken the money of 
 the goldsmiths and having told them that he would pay 
 interest, though he would not repay the principal. The 
 payment of interest was so neglected by the Treasury, that 
 the owners of the money had well-nigh given up hope, when 
 the Revolution took place. The debt was then acknow- 
 ledged, and became the nucleus of the Funds. Whatever 
 blessings the Glorious Revolution conferred upon England, 
 it is to the Revolution that we owe the National Debt. 
 The system of funding was brought from Holland, and 
 the policy of interference in Continental wars was com- 
 menced by the Revolution. This is not the place to con- 
 sider how far England was bound in honour to enter 
 upon those wars, or whether the * balance of power * was 
 a delusion. It is in Queen Anne's reign that we first 
 hear of stocks going up or down, forming what has been 
 described as a national pulse, so that the skilful man may 
 be able to tell whether the state of the nation is healthy. 
 The creation of the public funds has undoubtedly helped 
 in the formation of a moneyed class in opposition to the 
 landed interests. 
 
 But unfortunately when once the rulers had learnt 
 how easy it was to raise a loan, and throw the payment 
 Later history o^ ^^ futurc, the necessity for care was re- 
 of the Debt, moved. They were spending another genera- 
 tion's money, not their own. The following table will 
 show with what fatal readiness the lesson was learnt. 
 The figures represent millions of pounds : — 
 
 Loans, or posterity's share. 
 William's War. ending with Peace of Ryswick . . 13J 
 The Spanish Succession War . ... 38 
 
 -A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Economic and Social, 
 
 207 
 
 The wars in George XL's reign, and including the 
 whole of the Seven Years' War . . . .86 
 
 War of American Independence 121*' 
 
 Great French or Napoleonic War .... 600 
 
 In the earlier wars the taxation was nearly equal to 
 the loans. But in the worst and most unnecessary, the 
 American, the taxation did not amount to one-third of 
 the debt incurred. The example has been followed also 
 by other nations, and the debts of the world now amount 
 to no less than 4,000,000,000/. 
 
 The change of public sentiment on the subject of the 
 debt is shown by the fact that Swift thought the amount 
 so great that he was in favour of repudiation, r, ,. 
 The Whigs always made out that such a ^^ 
 policy would have been pursued if the Pretender had been 
 restored. Addison, with his usual felicity, describes a 
 dream which fell upon him after a visit to the bank. It 
 is a vision of Public Credit, a beautiful virgin, whose touch 
 could turn what she pleased to gold. Magna Charta, 
 the Acts of Uniformity, Toleration, and Settlement are 
 on the walls. She is easily affected by news, wastes 
 quickly away, and recovers with equal quickness. Then, 
 in a dance, entered hideous phantoms, two by two, at 
 sight of which the lady fainted. They were Tyranny and 
 Anarchy, Bigotr>^ and Atheism, the Genius of a common- 
 wealth, with a young man about twenty-two years of age. 
 He had a sword in his right hand, which in the dance he 
 often brandished at the Act of Settlement. A citizen 
 whispered that he saw a sponge in his left hand. This 
 was the Pretender, and the sponge was to wipe out the 
 national debt. The scene vanished, and a second dance 
 entered of amiable phantoms, Liberty and Monarchy, 
 Moderation and Religion, a third person (whom Addison 
 had then never seen, the Elector of Hanover), with the 
 Genius of Great Britain. Whereupon PubUc Credit 
 revived, and there were pyramids of guineas. 
 
 It 
 
208 
 
 ^1 
 
 ,1 
 
 1! 
 
 r 
 
 K 
 
 T/ie Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 Statesmen of the present day see the need of making 
 a provision for repayment, though, as money continually 
 decreases in value, the burden continually becomes of less 
 weight in proportion. When the French war ended the 
 amount was 840, and it is now 780 millions. 
 
 * Woe to England,' has been the warning of thinkers, 
 * when the coal fields are exhausted and the national debt 
 remains unpaid ! ' 
 
 Section I V. — Strength of parties. The Clergy. 
 
 As it was in the reign of Anne that parties began to 
 assume the shape which they have kept almost to our own 
 Parties timcs, it scems advisable to consider the 
 
 The bulk of classes of society from which the two parties 
 no party. respectively drew their strength. One must 
 premise that the great bulk of the English people belongs 
 to no party, but, being as it were between the two, sways 
 from one to the other, according as their sense of justice 
 or the prejudices of passion may incline them. When the 
 Long Parliament met, the bulk of the people were opposed 
 to the Court. Twenty years later at the Restoration they 
 were as certainly for the Stuarts, and as surely at the 
 Revolution against them. We may note also the sudden 
 change in the queen's reign, when the same mob that 
 had cheered Marlborough shouted for Dr. Sacheverell. 
 The same reflexion helps to explain sudden changes of 
 our own as well as of other days. 
 
 The strength of the Tories lay in the country rather 
 than in the towns, in the small boroughs rather than in 
 the large towns, in the agricultural rather than 
 in the moneyed interest. The tenant farmers 
 were mostly Tories. Almost all the clergy, and especially 
 the country clergy, were to be found in the Tory ranks. 
 As an extreme wing of the Tory clergy must be ranked 
 
 Tories. 
 
 -A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Economic and Social. 
 
 209 
 
 the non-jurors, those who resigned place rather than take 
 the oath of allegiance to William and Mary, a sect 
 numerically unimportant, but comprising several men who 
 were distinguished for learning and for piety. 
 
 The W^higs were strong in the large towns, London 
 being especially staunch to them. The merchants and 
 bankers, as well as most of the small free- 
 holders in the country, were Whigs, A good ^^*'** 
 many of the lords and of the bishops belonged to that 
 party ; but this was because the former had been created, 
 and the latter appointed, by King William. To these 
 must be added the whole body of the Dissenters, who 
 were estimated to amount to 4 per cent, of the population. 
 
 As the Universities were the recruiting ground of the 
 derg>', we should expect that the Tory party would be 
 strong in them. It was, however, much stronger at 
 Oxford than at Cambridge. Shortly after the accession 
 of George I , at the time of the rising for the old Pretender, 
 it was found necessary to send soldiers down to Oxford 
 to keep order. At the same time the king happened 
 to be sending a present of books to the sister University. 
 
 An Oxford epigram was written — 
 
 The king observing, with judicious eyes, 
 
 The state of both his universities, 
 
 To Oxford sent a troop of horse ; and why? 
 
 That learned body wanted loyalty ; 
 
 To Cambridge books he sent, as well discerning 
 
 How much that loyal body wanted learning. 
 
 A Cambridge man replied — 
 
 The king to Oxford sent a troop of horse, 
 For Tories own no argument but force ; 
 With equal skill to Cambridge books he sent, 
 For Whigs admit no force but argument. 
 
 There was a great difference between the clergy of the 
 towns and of the country ; the London clergy, especially, 
 
 M.H. P 
 
21© 
 
 ■■■'il 
 
 lit-.-:-* 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 were often men of mark. But the great majority of tfte 
 clergy were both in learning and in social position far 
 The clergy, below the Standard of the present day. It 
 aJJhS ^^^ estimated that not one benefice in forty 
 
 Bounty. was worth 100/. a year, so that the 'pass- 
 
 ing rich on 40/. a year,' of Goldsmith's poem would 
 not then have excited the smile that it now does ; and as 
 the Church of England wisely allows its clergy to marry, 
 there was very general misery and distress amongst their 
 families. Bishop Burnet claims the credit of having 
 suggested a method of improving their position, first to 
 WiUiam and then to Anne. The humane heart of Anne 
 at once approved the suggestion, and Parhament was 
 found quire wiUing to sanction the plan. In the times 
 before the Reformation it had been the practice to give 
 to the Pope firstfruits and tithes, that is, the whole of 
 the first year's revenue, and a tithe of all later years. When 
 Henry VIII. pillaged the Church this revenue was seized 
 by the Crown, and Burnet's suggestion was to apply this 
 fund to the improvement of the livings of the poorer clergy. 
 It is still called Queen Anne's Bounty. 
 
 -A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Literature, 
 
 CHAPXKR XXII. 
 
 LITERATURE. 
 Section I. — French Literature. 
 
 The age of Lewis XIV. is often called the Augustan Age 
 of French Literature. That name compares it with the 
 Augustan time when, under the rule and patronage of 
 ■J^e® °J^ Augustus, Roman literature reached its most 
 
 Literature. polished if not its most original epoch, and 
 when the masterpieces of most of the great Latin authors 
 
 211 
 
 were written. The period is often made to include works 
 which really belonged to earlier times. Nor did the 
 system of State patronage begin with Lewis. Some of 
 his predecessors had encouraged literature. To one of 
 them, Cardinal Richelieu, France owes the establish- 
 ment of the Academy, which, itself to a great extent the 
 creature of patronage, was intended in a 
 sense to be the vehicle of the king's patronage ^*""°"^S'*- 
 to others. Pensions were freely bestowed on authors, and 
 literature was intended to become a branch of the civil 
 service. The Academy was to draw up a code of laws 
 for the literary, by producing treatises on rhetoric and 
 poetics, and to compile a dictionary of the French 
 language, which, in the seventeenth century, was assuming 
 its present shape. Patronage certainly cannot create 
 genius any more than rules can make a poet. It is 
 within its power to promote culture ; but it will be found 
 that its tendency is to dwarf genius. Despotism cannot 
 give genius, but it can stifle it ; for really great men will 
 not long endure to live in the atmosphere of a despotic 
 court, and to shape their voices only to speech that is 
 agreeable there. They may for a time be content to 
 dedicate their works to a king who is their paymaster, 
 and to let their dedications be fulsome. Racine died in 
 disgrace because he spoke out about the miserable con- 
 dition of the French peasantr>', and Boileau left the Court 
 saying, *What should I do there? I know not how to 
 flatter.' 
 
 It is impossible to separate from the system of pa- 
 tronage the most marked characteristic of the era, that 
 everything must be done according to rule, p^ accord- 
 If patronage stifled genius on one side, rules i^e to rule. 
 stifled it on the other. The drama was hidebound by 
 the doctrine of the three unities — of time, of place, and 
 of action, fetters to which Shakespeare had never sub- 
 
 P2 
 
212 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 jected his genius. It was an age in which poetry was 
 reduced to an art, that is, a body of rules which can be 
 taught. Boileau, in imitation of Horace, wrote the * Art 
 of Poetry.' Pope, in turn, in the so-called Augustan 
 Age in England, copied Boileau as well as Horace in the 
 * Essay on Criticism.' 
 
 An instructive lesson with respect to the age of 
 Lewis XIV., is to be learnt in the fact that its great 
 . authors and artists fell within the first half of it. 
 firTt\aff of" The year 1688, which witnessed the English 
 reign. Revolution, divides the real reign of Lewis 
 
 XIV., that is, the time during which he himself governed, 
 into two equal halves. It has been noticed that almost 
 all the great ornaments of the time died before this year. 
 It would seem to follow that the effects of patronage are 
 only spasmodic and not permanent. The literary great- 
 ness of the reign was over at the same time as its 
 military successes ; and with the beginning of the new 
 century, and in the general misery of the Spanish Suc- 
 cession War, the character of the literature changed. A 
 new epoch had begun whose tone breathed rebellion 
 against the previous spirit. 
 
 It is, however, necessary to sketch in outline the 
 prominent features of the literature of the whole reign, in 
 order to understand both its results, and the rebelUon 
 against its influence. 
 
 First, the reign was very strong in the drama, having, 
 besides minor authors, three illustrious dramatists, 
 Moli^re, Corneille, and Racine, of whom the 
 first wrote comedies, the other two chiefly 
 tragedies. At first MolUre seems only to have had in 
 view the amusement of an audience ; but he soon learnt 
 that the poet should also teach. Whilst 
 standing well with the Court he attacked, in 
 an exquisitely ludicrous style, the follies and foibles of the 
 
 Drama. 
 
 Moliere. 
 
 _A.D. 1714- 
 
 Literature, 
 
 213 
 
 Corneille. 
 
 day ; at one time the pedantic affectation of the learned 
 women, at another the cumbrous and antiquated jargon 
 of the doctors, then the pious hypocrite, the citizen who 
 imitated the nobility, or the frivolous noble. Corneille 
 has the title of Father of French Tragedy. 
 He is distinguished for simplicity. He paints 
 the conflict between private and public passions, the 
 conflict between love and honour, or religion or duty. 
 He drew both the subjects of his plays and his method 
 of treatment from Spain ; whilst Racine who . 
 succeeded him drew his inspiration rather 
 from ancient Greece. In his hands French tragedy was 
 framed upon Greek models, and almost all his subjects 
 are taken either from classical or from sacred antiquity. 
 * Andromaque' was his first and * Athalie' his last play. His 
 plays are remarkable for grace of expression, rhythm and 
 correctness. He always conforms to the three unities, 
 that there shall be no impossibilities on the stage, no 
 asking the audience to pass over time or space. 
 
 The age of Lewis XIV. is, secondly, famous for the 
 development of French prose, and therein especially for 
 the composition of letters and of memoirs. French 
 The letters of Madame de Sevigni and the P^ose. 
 memoirs of the Due de Saint Simon, chief chamberlain 
 at the King's Court, may be selected as representatives. 
 The former are witty, tender, and always in good taste. 
 The latter, which belong, perhaps, rather to a later age, 
 are full of the gossip of this and the succeeding reign, 
 every species of anecdote, everything small and great 
 being recorded by a vivacious eye-witness. 
 
 It was to be expected that theology would flourish ; 
 but it was for the most part a courtly theology, and in- 
 spired by the Jesuits. The eloquence of the Theology, 
 pulpit became very famous. Bossuet, Bishop Bossuet 
 of Meaux, was the chief of the preachers, and his excel- 
 
2 14 The Age of Anne, a. a 1 702^ 
 
 lence lay especially in funeral orations. Bossuet may be 
 said to have applied to religion the teaching which Lewis 
 inculcated in politics. With him all opposition was 
 wrong, whether it took the form of Protestantism and 
 absolute revolt from the Church, or the minor form of 
 holding different views within her pale. Such a revolt 
 Pascal ^^^ shown in Pascal, who, after displaying 
 
 a precocious and extraordinary genius for 
 mathematics, at an early age turned his attention to 
 theology, and just before Lewis took up the reins of 
 government, published his * Provincial Letters,' a book 
 which attacked the teaching and views of the Jesuits. 
 Pascal belonged to a sect called the Jansenists, because 
 its members held certain views first promulgated by a 
 Bishop Jansenius on the subject of predestination. There 
 was a fierce controversy between them and the Jesuits. 
 But the latter having the ear of the Papal Court were 
 enabled to procure from the Pope a Bull against their 
 opponents. It was called froxn its first word, the Bull 
 Unigenitus, dated September 1713, in which the Jan- 
 senists were condemned, and the king insisted on the 
 acceptance of the Bull throughout France. 
 
 One of the leading theologians was Fenelon, Arch- 
 bishop of Cambray. On account of the saintliness of 
 F€n€lon ^'^ character he had been appointed tutor to 
 
 the young Duke of Burgundy. * TeMmaque ' 
 is a book which he wrote for the use of his pupil, and 
 under veil of describing antiquity, it contains a strong 
 condemnation of the Government, as well as a sort of 
 programme for reform, which his pupil would probably 
 have carried out if he had reached the throne. 
 Influence of As a result of the age of Lewis XIV. the 
 
 Eng°bh°" French language acquired a great ascendency 
 literature. in Europe. It became the language of diplo- 
 macy and of polite society. Its influence upon English 
 
 -A.D. 1714. 
 
 Literature. 
 
 mf 
 
 literature is well worth notice. Pope, the leading poet of 
 the time, shows many traces of a study of French writers. 
 Addison spent a long time in France, and one can see 
 the same influence in his polished and easy style. 
 
 After the Peace of Utrecht, the current of influence 
 seemed to pass the other way. Many Frenchmen visited 
 England and conceived the greatest admira- YTftxic\i 
 tion for the spirit of English politics, EngUsh ^f^J^^^^ 
 laws, and EngHsh society. It would be fnsph^edby 
 hardly too much to say that some of the England. 
 seeds of the French Revolution were sown in their minds 
 and the admiration first acquired, of which they after- 
 wards gave such practical expression, of the way in 
 which the English treated their kings in general, and 
 Charles I. in particular. 
 
 When Lewis XIV. died, Voltaire was a young man 
 Just of age, and Jean Jacques Rousseau was in the nursery. 
 Though the former never quite shook off his feeling of 
 reverence for the king, one cannot help feeling that it 
 was opposition to the spirit of the French Government 
 and knowledge of its results that led both these thinkers 
 and writers to fan the spirit of liberty. So that here, 
 also, the Revolution was being prepared, though there 
 were years and years of weary misgovernment before its 
 outbreak. 
 
 Section IL— English Literature, 
 
 The reign of Queen Anne, likewise, is usually called 
 the Augustan Age of English Literature. It was a time 
 when England was as great in literature as Augustan 
 in war. Writers of deeper tone and weightier ^f e^of^ 
 calibre have lived at other times ; but there is Literature, 
 probably no period so short in which so many famous 
 books have been given to the world, or in which forces 
 have had their roots destined so powerfully to influence 
 
2l6 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702— 
 
 the future. There are many who regard the name as 
 whoHy mappropr,ate,for the Latin literature was fostered 
 ma! h'^K""";' '?''™"'^" °^ A^^-^'^^- However great 
 
 Tcanno b?if rr/' ''"'""^ ''' '^"'^^ Q"-" A^nne/ 
 It cannot be nchided amongst her virtues that she cared 
 
 h^Lrctelf'ir"?- ^" ^"^='"= was aStX' 
 tne exerc.se of his patronage by the taste and discrimi- 
 
 rn£^rsu.^^c?X"marit\?"d ''%'''"' ^">' 
 
 «.iujcv,L vvno made it his pride and h s DleA«;iir#x 
 
 oSreTrv:Tv ^'^ ^^^>''"^i-^ wh^^ouTd ;: 
 
 ^4 .nd TeHH "'"" ^^ ^'^"^^"^^ -- Marl. 
 Dorou^n and he did not care for poetry and w;,^ 
 
 nervously sensitive to the least attack on hlmVelf " 
 
 above hi T T "^ ^^" ^'^^' P^^^°" standing out 
 above the rest, alike prominent and anxious to make the 
 
 mth^many be fair to say that the time of Queen Anne 
 
 aee a time'^^nnt f '^^ Augustan age, a time of patron- 
 age a time, not of one, but of many patrons. There 
 probably never was a time in which successfuUiterature 
 was so well rewarded : probably never a time Sich 
 
 men Intimr " ''"' '^r ^" ^^^^^^^^^ -^ ^^terarj 
 iTke Prior r7 7^ """'' ^'"' ^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ '^ Poet 
 toJr/ t ^ f ^^^^"^^^ ^^ke Bolingbroke, would write 
 to and of each other as Matt and Harry 
 
 Pope was the representative poet of the age, and he 
 
 S^Srr Zrf'"uT "^ ""'' ^"^"^^>^ int;rcourse 
 T^Jlt r K ^,°^^"^^'°^^ (^^^h« supplied him with the 
 Ind of th. 'fj'T^^^''':: -' -"e of his greatest poems), 
 iieningl '"" ^'^^ Peterborough gave him in 
 
 There my retreat the best companions grace 
 Chiefs out of war, and statesmen out of place 
 There St. John mingles with ray friendly bowl 
 The feast of reason and the flow of soul • 
 
 -A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Literature. 
 
 217 
 
 And he, whose lightning pierced the Iberian lines, 
 Now forms my quincunx, and now ranks my vines, 
 Or tames the genius of the stubborn plain. 
 Almost as quickly as he conquered Spain. 
 
 No * Statesman out of place ' probably ever had nobler 
 eulogy passed upon him than that with which Pope 
 honoured Harley — 
 
 A soul supreme in each hard instance tried. 
 Above all pain, all passion, and all pride, 
 The rage of power, the blast of public breath, 
 The lust of lucre, and the dread of death. 
 
 Alexander Pope was bom in 1688, the year of the 
 Revolution. His father was a London linen-draper, who, 
 on retiring from business, went to live near 
 Windsor. The boy was deformed, and al- ^°^' 
 most a dwarf: throughout his life he suffered a great 
 deal from disease. An undercurrent of unhappiness, 
 caused by his bodily ailments, and a nervous irritability, 
 which is not uncomlnon with very short men, can be 
 traced through all his life. Unable to engage in the 
 sports of boyhood, he showed poetical talents at a very 
 early age : 
 
 I lisped in numbers, for the numbers came. 
 
 So great was his reverence for Dryden, the poet of his 
 boyhood, that, in the last year of the seventeenth century, 
 when he was twelve years old, at his own express desire, 
 he was taken up to London, to Wills' coffee-house, in 
 order to see him. Dryden died in that very year. His 
 mantle and a double portion of his spirit fell upon Pope. 
 The following are his most famous works, given in 
 the order in which they were composed : ' Essay on 
 Criticism,* * Rape of the Lock,' * Messiah,' Translation 
 of Homer's IHad and part of the Odyssey, * Dunciad,* 
 ' Essay on Man,' ' Imitations of Horace,' and * Epistles/ 
 
 
2l8 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 -A.I?. 1 7 14. 
 
 Literature, 
 
 219 
 
 Most of these were written after the reign of Anne, at 
 the time of whose death he was engaged in translating 
 the Iliad. 
 
 The ' Essay on Criticism ' may be said to be an imi- 
 tation of the'Ars Poetica'of Horace, but there is this 
 'Essay on difference between the writers : Horace was 
 Cnticism.' an experienced and practised poet, Pope a 
 young man of twenty-three. Though the former may 
 claim the palm for originahty in the treatment of such a 
 subject, honour must also be given to the genius of the 
 young man, which enabled him to utter thoughts worthy 
 of the wisdom of age. 
 
 The 'Rape of the Lock' is a playful poem, mock 
 heroic. It has been called the true epic of the time. A 
 • Rape of the young cavalier of the Court cut a lock of hair 
 ^^^•' from off the head of a beautiful maid of 
 
 honour. The place that the gods occupy in epic poems, 
 Pope supplies in this airy pleasantry with sylphs and 
 gnomes, and the whole subject is treated in so graceful a 
 style that the poem may serve as a model for this species 
 of composition. 
 
 On Pope's * Homer,' his best-known but not his 
 greatest work, his contemporary Bentley, the greatest 
 'Homer' ^lassical critic of all time, has passed a criti- 
 cism to which, even now, we can add nothing. 
 ' A very pretty poem, Mr. Pope, but please don't call it 
 Homer.' The sonorous dignity of the original and its 
 natural freedom have vanished, and been replaced by 
 the stiffness of an artificial style. But it is the work of 
 a tnie poet, and, if it does not reproduce Homer, is yet 
 well worth reading for its own sake. 
 
 It is said that Lord Bolingbroke supplied Pope with 
 'Essay on ^^^ material out of which he composed the 
 Man.' four epistles that fonn the * Essay on Man,' a 
 
 treatise on the relation of man to the universe, to 
 
 
 himself, and to society, and on man's pursuit of happi- 
 ness. The matter is, however, certainly the least valu- 
 able portion of it ; as to treatment it may be regarded as 
 Pope's masterpiece. The merits of Pope's poetry shine 
 forth in it ; these merits not being originality ^ , 
 
 , . , .... 1 Pope s style. 
 
 or sympathy with nature, or msight mto cha- 
 racter, virtues which distinguish greater poets, but grace, 
 smoothness, correctness, the perfection of taste. He 
 pays infinite attention to the form of his verses, making 
 the subject-matter a secondary consideration. His lines 
 remind one of the exquisite chiselling of a master sculptor. 
 In few English poets can we find such melody of rhythm. 
 Dr. Johnson compares his prose to that of Dryden in 
 language which may be applied also to their poems. 
 * The style of Dryden is capricious and varied, that of 
 Pope is cautious'and uniform ; Dryden is sometimes vehe- 
 ment and rapid, Pope is always smooth,' uniform, and 
 gentle. Dryden's page is a natural field, rising into 
 inequalities, and diversified by the varied exuberance of 
 abundant vegetation ; Pope's is a velvet lawn, shaven by 
 the scythe, and levelled by the roller.' 
 
 Pope's influence upon English poetry may be said to 
 have lasted to the end of the century, and it cannot be 
 regarded as beneficial. Poetr>^ consists of popc'sin- 
 two parts— the outward form and the inward fluence. 
 meaning. Some writers have neglected one, some the 
 other. The absence of heart and of nature in the poetry 
 of the last century seems to be due to imitation of Pope. 
 For his style is like Ulysses' bow, it requires a master's 
 hand to make it really effective. 
 
 The real strength, however, of the age of Anne lay not 
 in poetry, but in prose ; and its prose, still p^.^^^ 
 more than its poetry, influenced the times that Party 
 
 uolitics* 
 
 followed, and is making its influence still felt 
 
 in our own day. There was a close alliance between 
 
220 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 politics and literature, but politics took more than ever 
 the form of party politics. A great development had 
 taken place in parties, for not only was there the contest 
 raging between Whigs and Tories, and side by side with 
 it the sister contest between Low and High Church, but 
 also there was a new aspect of the tight between the 
 Ins and the Outs. Before the end of the reign it came 
 to be understood that all the ministers should be of one 
 party, whilst the other was in opposition. This gave a 
 new— almost a pecuniary— interest to the contest. 
 
 If there was no Augustus and no Maecenas, party 
 spirit took their place. The elections to the House of 
 Patronage Commons Were all-important, and the ques- 
 by parties. tion arose— How were they to be influenced ? 
 Now-a-days, elections still being of importance, more 
 influence is due to the speeches of a few eminent men, 
 delivered in Parliament or in public places and to the 
 articles in the newspapers, than to the views of candidates 
 at each election. But at the outset of Queen Anne's 
 reign there were hardly any newspapers and no reporters. 
 Nay, more, there was a law against reporting, and valu- 
 able debates are in consequence wholly lost to history. 
 Even to our own times the practice lasted that any member 
 might exclude reporters by merely calling the Speaker's 
 attention to their presence. Members of Parliament 
 might be influenced by speeches ; those outside could 
 be reached only by pamphlets. Able pens were therefore 
 in demand for pamphlet writing, and able men, whether 
 they liked it or not, were compelled to declare for a 
 party. It is quite true that the best literary men pro- 
 tested against this compulsion. Swift made it a point in 
 his satire of the contest between the Big-endians, and 
 Little-endians. Addison humorously tells of the boy who, 
 asking his way, was abused by one as a Popish cur in 
 asking for St. Ann's Lane, and cuffed for irreverence when 
 
 -A.D. 1 7 14. 
 
 Literature, 
 
 221 
 
 Pamphlets. 
 
 he asked for Ann's Lane. Pope protests vehemently that 
 the matters are not worth the fighting for : 
 
 For forms of government let fools contest : 
 Whate'er is best administered is best. 
 
 Pamphlets were not a new invention. Our great 
 Milton during the middle' stage of his life was a pam- 
 phleteer. But the profusion with which 
 pamphlets were poured forth was new, and 
 formed a marked characteristic of the time. 
 
 We are so much accustomed to our daily papers that 
 we sometimes wonder how people used to get on without 
 them. At Athens of old they supplied the want by con- 
 versation in the market-place. In Queen Anne's reign 
 it was done partly by pamphlets, partly by clubs and 
 coffee-houses, which were beginning to have considerable 
 influence on political and social life. 
 
 The greatest pamphleteer, probably the greatest 
 genius of his time, was Jonathan Swift. He was of 
 English extraction, but born and educated in 
 Dublin. At the age of twenty-one, in the 
 year of the Revolution, he entered the service of Sir 
 William Temple, a distant kinsman, apparently in the 
 capacity of secretary. His position seems to have been 
 unpleasant to him, for he left it, and took holy orders ; 
 but he returned to it again, and though not proud of the 
 connexion, yet he edited Temple's works when his patron 
 died. Temple had retired from political life, but was 
 often consulted by William III., when the king wanted 
 an opinion less interested than that of the partisans who 
 surrounded him. King William taught Swift how to cut 
 asparagus in the Dutch fashion, and offered him a cor- 
 netcy in a troop of horse. It is said also that his name 
 was entered in William's note-book for preferment ; but 
 William died, and Swift's own conduct prevented prefer- 
 ment coming from the king's successor. 
 
^^ At 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 --A.D. 1 714. 
 
 Literature, 
 
 22$ 
 
 His first work was the 'Tale of a Tub/ a very ludi- 
 crous story of three brothers, Peter, Jack, and Martin, 
 * Tale of a who represent respectively the Roman Catho- 
 '^"^•' lie, the Calvinist, and the Lutheran religion. 
 
 The story is told of their attempts to carry out their 
 father^s wishes in agreement, and of their quarrel at the 
 Reformation. The whole tendency of the book was to 
 cast ridicule upon religion. 
 
 Failing in his efforts for promotion. Swift changed 
 his party, and went over to the Tories, who received 
 him with open arms ; but the queen would not consent 
 to the wish of her ministers to make him a bishop. 
 Ultimately he was appointed Dean of St. Patrick's, 
 Dublin. 
 
 He was naturally of a sour temper, and the continued 
 disappointments of his life made him very bitter. He is 
 a furious assailant, sparing no insult to gain his point. 
 He seems to have had little heart. His humour is 
 wonderful, such that no English writer has ever equalled 
 it. Ireland alone could have produced it. One could 
 desire no addition to it but a little kindliness. 
 
 His pamphlets are indispensable to the historian of 
 the reign of Queen Anne. Their name is Legion. One 
 ' Conduct of of them probably had greater influence than 
 the Allies.' ^^y other pamphlet ever had. When the 
 Whigs were turned out of office, the public opinion in 
 England, especially in the City, was still strongly in 
 favour of the prosecution of the war. The effect of the 
 * Conduct of the Allies,' showing that the English people 
 were paying the allies that they might be allowed to 
 fight their battles for them, was magical in turning the 
 tide of opinion. Stocks fell when the Whigs were turned 
 out ; stocks were unaffected by the cessation of arms 
 which showed that negotiations were genuine. 
 
 In King George's reign Swift wrote * Drapier's Letters/ 
 
 against a new Government Coinage, and the result was 
 that the coinage was withdrawn, whilst Swift 'Drapier's 
 became the darling of the Irish people. Letters.' 
 
 But of course Swift's really greatest work is ' Gulliver's 
 Travels,' which may be described as a satire upon 
 humanity, with contemporary allusions. In 'Gulliver's 
 the voyage to Lilliput is represented the T^veis.* 
 littleness of mankind, as seen by beings of a larger growth. 
 In Brobdingnag the absurdities of men are shown, seen, 
 as it were, through a magnifying glass. Then Gulliver 
 travels to other lands, wherein learning and science are 
 satirised, and at length Swift bursts forth into terrible 
 descriptions of the Yahoos, which read like a savage 
 attack on mankind. 
 
 Swift outlived his 'genius, and before his death sank 
 into absolute idiocy. The story is told how swift's 
 towards the end of his life he took up one *^^^'**- 
 of his own books and said, * Good God, what a genius 
 I had when I wrote that book ! ' 
 
 So Swift expired, a driveller and a show. 
 
 The following epitaph in St. Patrick's Cathedral he 
 composed for himself : — 
 
 Hie jacet Jonathan Swift, S.T.P, 
 
 ubi Scxva indignatio cor iilterius lacerare nequit. 
 
 Abi, viator, imitare, si poteris. 
 
 Swift was the great Tory pamphleteer, famous as the 
 author of * Gulliver.' A writer on the Whig side was 
 none other than the author of ' Robinson Crusoe.' 
 
 Daniel De Foe was born in 1661, the year after the 
 Restoration. His real name was Foe, for though he 
 had this strange fancy for prefixing de to his 
 name, he was a true-bom Englishman. His ^ °^' 
 father was a London butcher, a Whig and a Dissenter, 
 and he was himself engaged in business as a hosier ; but 
 
224 
 
 The Age of A nne. 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 his strong sympathy with that extreme section of the 
 Whig party which the Dissenters formed soon drew him 
 from commerce, in which he was unsuccessful, to litera- 
 ture. He had a very facile pen, and it often got him into 
 trouble ; but neither pillory nor imprisonment could 
 restrain him from writing again. As a faithful and extreme 
 Whig he had joined Monmouth, and taken refuge abroad 
 after the defeat of Sedgemoor. He was a great friend of 
 the Glorious Revolution, and during the reign of William 
 was always ready to defend the king and his cause, even 
 with respect to acts which were unpopular. His career 
 as a pamphleteer may be said to have begun one year 
 before the Revolution, and to have ended about a year 
 after the end of Queen Anne's reign. The two most 
 famous of his pamphlets are * The True-born English- 
 man,' which appeared in the former, and ' The Shortest 
 Way with Dissenters,' in the latter. 
 
 * The True-born Englishman ' is a poem in which De 
 Foe defends King William. The verse is not melodious, 
 and may be said in parts to descend to doggerel ; but its 
 ' True-bom Sterling sense caused a very large sale, Con- 
 English- sidering the services that William and his 
 ^'^' Dutch soldiers had conferred upon England, 
 even a true-born Enghshman can forgive him for liking 
 his old friends better than his new subjects. The former 
 at any rate had been true to him. 
 
 The foreigners have faithfully obeyed him, 
 
 And none but Englishmen have e'er betrayed him. 
 
 The writer vigorously maintains the principles of the 
 Revolution against the tyranny which James had wished 
 to establish. The claims of kings should be broad-based 
 upon their people's will. 
 
 Titles are shadows, crowns are empty things, 
 The good of subjects is the end of kings. 
 
 A.D. I714. 
 
 Literature. 
 
 225 
 
 ' The Shortest Way with Dissenters ' was a pamphlet 
 called forth by the Occasional Conformity BiU. The 
 Church party, knowing that the queen was on 
 their side, were anxious to persecute the Way'i^fh 
 Dissenters, until they were entirely rid of ^'^^°'«"-' 
 them. They wished legislation to run in the groove of 
 Charles I I.'s reign, not in that of William's. De Foe wrote 
 under the disguise of a Churchman, and his shortest way 
 was this : 'If one severe law were made and punctually 
 executed that whoever was found at a conventicle should 
 be banished the nation, and the preacher be hanged, we 
 should soon see an end of the tale.' The Churchmen 
 were delighted, and De Foe had to publish an explana- 
 tion of his sarcasm, at which they were proportionately 
 enraged. The result was the pillory and imprisonment. 
 The pamphlet is really an argument in favour of complete 
 toleration, for he also attacks his own friends the Dis- 
 senters, because when they had the power they did not 
 respect their opponents. Now, like the cock in the stable, 
 they are quite willing to propose to the horses, ' let us aU 
 keep our legs quiet' 
 
 De ^ Foe's greatest work is, of course, ' Robinson 
 Crusoe. He was nearly sixty when he wrote it. It is 
 founded upon the adventures of Alexander . p . • 
 Selkirk, a seaman who had been marooned CnS^T"" 
 upon the island of Juan Fernandez, that is to say, put 
 on shore by his captain and left there on pretence that 
 he had committed some great crime. The adventures 
 of Robinson Crusoe, his shipwreck, his life upon the 
 island, his attempts to provide himself with the common 
 necessaries of life, his meeting with Friday, the boat too 
 big to launch, and ultimately the escape, have delighted 
 many generations of readers, young as well as old. 
 Written in an exceedingly simple style, it has all the air 
 of a real narrative. 
 
 M, H. Q 
 
 j'ii 
 
226 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D. 1702- 
 
 But the most famous Whig writer of the time, and one 
 whose life is closely mixed up with its history, is Joseph 
 Addison. He was educated at the Charter- 
 house, which was then, and indeed until late 
 years, a London school, but has now been moved into the 
 country. A modern novelist, himself educated at the 
 same school, writes with great pride of Addison, as the 
 head boy at the Charter-house. Addison distinguished 
 himself at school, and went thence to Oxford, where he 
 obtained a fellowship at Magdalen College. He had a 
 great reputation for Latin scholarship and especially for 
 Latin verses. He also tried English verses, and some of 
 them arresting the attention of Lord Somers, that enlight- 
 ened nobleman procured Addison a pension, wherewith 
 he travelled over France and Italy. He stayed a long 
 time in France, and the influence of a close acquaintance 
 with French literature can be plainly traced in Addison's 
 style. On King William's death the pension ceased, and 
 he returned to England. He published an account of 
 his travels, which was not successful, and for some years 
 Addison lived in poor, but dignified and contented retire- 
 ment in lodgings in the Haymarket, up two pairs of stairs. 
 When the battle of Blenheim was fought, its glory was 
 sung by many poetasters in miserable verses, which 
 seemed to the ministers to mar it. Godolphin, the Prime- 
 Minister, did not know to whom to turn. A Whig noble- 
 man suggested an appHcation to Addison, on condition 
 that all due respect be shown in making it. The Chan- 
 cellor of the Exchequer was sent as a deputation to 
 Addison, who consented to write, and when the Chan- 
 cellor came again the poem was completed as far as the 
 following passage: — 
 
 But O my Muse ! what numbers wilt thou find 
 To sing the furious troops in battle join'd ? 
 Methinks I hear the drum's tumultuous sound 
 The victor's shouts and dying groans confound ; 
 
 A.D. 1714. 
 
 Literature. 
 
 227 
 
 The dreadful burst of cannon rend the skies, 
 
 And all the thunder of the battle rise. 
 
 Twas then great Marlborough's mighty soul was proved. 
 
 That, m the shock of charging hosts unmoved. 
 Amidst confusion, horror, and despair, 
 
 Examined all the dreadful scenes of war : 
 In peaceful thought the field of death surveyed, 
 To fainting squadrons sent the timely aid. 
 Inspired repulsed battalions to engage, 
 And taught the doubtful battle where to rage. 
 So when an angel, by divine command. 
 With rising tempests shakes a guilty land 
 (Such as of late o'er pale Britannia passed), 
 Calm and serene he drives the furious blast ; 
 And. pleased the Almighty's orders to perform. 
 Rides in the whirlwind and directs the storm. 
 
 This simile carried the minister away with enthusiasm 
 and the same feeling was quickly spread throughout the 
 country when the whole poem called * The Campaign ' 
 was published. All the critics allow that the merit of the 
 rest of the poem is by no means equal to that of this 
 passage, and that its great praise is that it recognises 
 the truth, that m a modern battle the general does not 
 engage hand to hand with the enemy, and slay thousands 
 with his own sword, but is the directing mind of the 
 whole. 
 
 By this poem Addison's career was made. He was 
 appointed in turn Commissioner of Appeals, Secretary 
 to Legation at Hanover, Under-Secretary of State, 
 Secretary for Ireland, and ultimately, three years after 
 the accession of King George I., Secretary of State. He 
 married the Countess of Warwick, to whose son he had 
 formeriy been tutor, and lived at Holland House, which 
 has been for so many generations the haunt of a brilliant 
 literary society. 
 
 The character of Addison has made him almost the 
 
 Q2 
 
228 
 
 The Age of Anne, 
 
 A.D, 1702- 
 
 Character. 
 
 model of a literary man. He had only one weakness^ 
 inability to resist the temptation of wine, and 
 that was, perhaps, the fault of his age rather 
 than of himself. He was humane, genial, modest, and, 
 in the best sense of the word, religious. The wits of his 
 day used to call him * a parson in a tye-wig '—the lay- 
 man's wig— as we might say, 'a clergyman in a black 
 tie :' indeed, the benevolent morality of his writings and 
 their earnest Christianity have probably had more effect 
 for good than many sermons. 
 
 Pope quarrelled with Addison, and inserted in one of 
 his poems the following magnificent declamation against 
 him : — 
 
 Peace to all such ! but were there one whose fires 
 True genius kindles, and fair fame inspires ; 
 Bless'd with each talent and each art to please, 
 And bora to write, converse, and live with ease ; 
 Should such a man, too fond to rule alone. 
 Bear, like the Turk, no brother near the throne, 
 View him with scornful, yet with jealous eyes. 
 And hate for arts that caused himself to rise : 
 Damn with faint praise, assent with civil leer. 
 And, without sneering, teach the rest to sneer ; 
 Willing to wound, and yet afraid to strike. 
 Just hint a fault, and hesitate dislike ; 
 Alike reserved to blame or to commend, 
 A timorous foe, and a suspicious friend ; 
 Dreading e'en fools, by flatterers besieged, 
 And so obliging that he ne'er obliged ; 
 Like Cato, give his little senate laws, 
 And sit attentive to his own applause ; 
 While wits and Templars every sentence raise, 
 And wonder with a foolish face of praise— 
 W^ho but must laugh, if such a man there be ? 
 Who would not weep, if Atticus were he ? 
 
 It is said that in the first draft, Addison's name stood 
 without even the veil of * Atticus.' There can, how- 
 
 A.D. 1 7 14. 
 
 Literature, 
 
 229 
 
 'Cato.' 
 
 ever, be no doubt that this attack is very unfair, and pro- 
 ceeded from the spiteful venom of the poet. It is 
 quite true that Addison had a band of faithful admirers, 
 to one of whom we shall presently advert. But jealousy 
 -was not Addison's failing, though it was Pope's. 
 
 The allusion to Cato would show that the passage 
 was intended for Addison, even if there were no direct 
 -evidence. Cato was the name of Addison's 
 single tragedy. It was first acted in 1713, 
 the month after the Peace of Utrecht was concluded. A 
 ^eat deal of it had been written much earlier, but the 
 play was only recently finished. Pope, then friendly to 
 Addison, wrote a prologue to it, and asjAddison surren- 
 dered all the profit of the performance to the actors, 
 they did their utmost to make it a success. It was 
 a time when party feeling ran very high. The Whigs 
 applauded every passage in praise of liberty, and the 
 Tories, not to be outdone, applauded also. Marl- 
 borough's application to be made captain-general for life 
 being still fresh in men's memories, Lord Bolingbroke 
 made a capital hit by sending for the chief actor between 
 the acts, and presenting him with a purse of 50/. ' for 
 ■defending the cause of liberty so well against a perpetual 
 dictator.' The saying went round the Tory benches that 
 the Whigs meant to make as good a present, when they 
 could accompany it with as good a speech. The play is 
 constructed after French models, and is certainly neither 
 admired nor read in the present day ; it is too frigid. 
 But a few lines from it still pass as the current coin of 
 €very-day quotation. 
 
 A fellow-worker on the same side, and intimately 
 connected with Addison, was Mr. Richard Steele. They 
 were educated at the same school, and were 
 contemporaries and friends at Oxford. But 
 whilst Addison was steady, and distinguished himself, 
 
 Steele. 
 
230 
 
 The Age of Anne. 
 
 A.D. I702-- 
 
 Steele was idle. At length, no longer able to bear the 
 restraints of Oxford life, he ran away and enlisted as a 
 private in the Blues. Later, he obtained a cornetcy, and 
 we find him afterwards a captain in the Fusiliers. Steele*s 
 name, like Swift's, was down in William's note-book for 
 promotion; but William's death destroyed the value of 
 the entry. It has been said of Steele that he spent his 
 life in * sinning and repenting.' Whilst notorious for his- 
 gaiety and the dissipation of his life, he astonished the 
 town by bringing out a little book called the * Christian 
 Hero,' which breathes the very spirit of piety. 
 
 When his party was in power, places were found for 
 him, and at length Sir Richard Steele was appointed 
 
 •Tatier.- ^^*^°'' °^ ^^^ 'Gazette.' It occurred to him^ 
 
 that the early information which he thus 
 
 obtained might be made of use in a paper, and that the 
 
 dulness of news might be relieved by an occasional essay 
 
 on some subject not political. This idea took form in the 
 
 * Tatier,' which, when the Whigs lost office and Steele 
 
 his place, was merged afterwards in the more famous 
 
 , g ^^^^^^^ , * Spectator,' in which Steele received great 
 
 pecta or. assistance from Addison. The share which 
 
 Addison and Steele had in this constitutes their chief 
 
 claim's upon the notice of posterity. It was a small sheet, 
 
 published three times a week, at the price of one penny^ 
 
 containing a short essay on two of the pages and news on 
 
 the others. 
 
 The subjects of the essays were infinitely varied : now 
 a criticism on manners, now on the hoops worn by ladies, 
 on their absurd practice of wearing patches on the face, 
 or on cherry-coloured ribbons. These lighter subjects 
 would be matched by reflexions on Westminster Abbey, 
 on the Exchange, on the Bank, or by criticisms of decided 
 value on Milton's * Paradise Lost,' and on the old ballad 
 of ' Chevy Chase.' But a sort of thread of connexion 
 
 A.D. lyl^ 
 
 Literature, 
 
 231 
 
 was given to the papers by the character of the Spectator, 
 a quiet observer of men and manners, and by the account 
 of the club, with its types of EngUsh society of the day, 
 the first sketch of which is due to Steele. The character 
 of Sir Roger de Coverley, its leading member, the repre- 
 sentative of the English country gentleman, was adopted 
 and improved by Addison, who wrote all the later papers 
 about him, until Steele again tried his hand, placing the 
 old knight in improper company ; and to prevent such a 
 liberty being taken again, Addison wrote a very touching 
 account of his death. 
 
 The influence of the 'Spectator' has been very 
 remarkable. One may regard the modern newspaper and 
 the modem magazine as its children. For influence on 
 newspapers combine criticism with news, the future, 
 magazines present essays without the news. Surely the 
 most significant feature of modem literature is to be 
 found in the merit and profusion of its periodicals that 
 are poured forth daily, weekly, monthly, from the press. 
 Their transparent fault is that they are transitory ; but 
 the gain is, that knowledge which once remained upon 
 the mountain-height, is now brought down to water the 
 plain. Who shall measure their influence ? 
 
INDEX 
 
 
 ^**- miiin 
 
 ACA 
 
 ACADEMY, French, establish- 
 ment of, 211 
 
 Addison. Joseph, his sketch of the 
 Exchange, 193 ; his dream, 207 ; his 
 early life, 226 ; his character, 228 
 
 Adolpnus, Gustavus, 150, 152 
 
 * Ahlden. Princess of, 180 
 
 Aix-la-Chapelle, peace of, 17 
 
 Albigenses, the, 49 
 
 Allies, the, campaigns in Germany 
 and elsewhere, 43 ; defeat the 
 French at Blenheim, 63 ; victory 
 at _ Ram il lies, 76 ; Madrid relin- 
 quished by, 84 ; the year of vic- 
 tory, 73-85 ; the year of disaster, 
 86-^1 ; defeated at Almanza, 88 ; 
 results of their defeat, 89 ; fight- 
 ing in the Low Countries, 92-105 ; 
 victory at Oudenarde, 94 ; over- 
 tures for peace by France, 98 ; 
 terms insisted on by, 98 ; victory 
 at Malplaquet, 104 ; later cam- 
 paigns m Spain, 105-115; victory 
 at Almenara and Saragossa, 109, 
 zio; advance and enter Madrid, 
 iio-iii ; retreat to Toledo, 112; 
 return to Catalonia, 112 ; English 
 defeated at Bnhuega, 113 ; battle 
 of Villa Viciosa, 114; end of the 
 war, 126 ; separation of English 
 troops from, 131 ; defeated at De- 
 nain, 132 
 
 Almanza, battle of, 88 ; the positions 
 of the armies and total defeat of the 
 allies, 88 ; results of defeat, 89 ; 
 effects of, 105 
 
 Almenara, battle of, 109 
 
 Anderkirk taken, 77 
 
 Anne, daughter of James II., Queen 
 of England, succeeds to the throne, 
 24 ; her character, 24 ; her children 
 
 BEN 
 
 and husband, 25 ; development of 
 English parties in her reign, 115 ; 
 her impartial views, 117; her first 
 Torj^ ministry, 117 ; gradually alie- 
 nated from the Duchess of Marlbo- 
 rough, 121; change of her ministry, 
 122-123 ' dispute as to her succes- 
 sor, 169 ; the last week of her reign, 
 quarrels in the ministry, 176 
 
 Antwerp falls into the hands of Marl- 
 borough, 77 
 
 ' Arbuthnot's History of John Bull,' 
 a political satire on the dishonour 
 to Spain, 7 
 
 Architecture, flourishing condition of. 
 i§3 
 
 Assiento contract, the, 135 
 
 Ath, siege of, 78 
 
 Augsburg, league of, 23 
 
 Augustan age, of French literature, 
 210; of English literature, 215 
 
 Augustus, Ernest, Duke of Bruns- 
 wick- Luneburg, 172 
 
 Austria, trouble m, 55 
 
 BADEN, peace of, 134 
 Barcelona taken, 70 ; besieged 
 
 by the French, 82 ; stormed and 
 
 taken, 186 
 Bath, Beau Nash's improvements in, 
 
 196 
 Bavaria, Elector of, his alliance with 
 
 France, 39 ; at the battle of Ramil- 
 
 lies, 74 ; reinstated, 135, 136 
 Bavarians, routed at Schellenberg, 58 
 Beachy Head, battle of, 23 
 Beau Nash, 196 
 
 Beer, enormous consumption of, 202 
 Benbow, Admiral, 44 
 Bentinck, Duke of Portland, 6 
 
234 
 
 Index, 
 
 Index. 
 
 235 
 
 BER 
 
 Berwick, Duke of, commands the 
 French forces, 47 ; enters Madrid, 
 85; defeats the allies at AImanza,88 
 Black Death, the, 197 
 Blenheim, battle of, preparations for 
 battle, 59 ; description of the 
 ground, 59 ; position of the armies, 
 61 ; the battle begins, 61 ; the 
 result, 65 
 Blenheim Palace, nearWoodstock,i95 
 Bohemia, Elector of, 33 
 Bolingbroke, Lord {sec St. John, 
 
 Henry) 
 Bonn taken, 42 
 Bossuet, Bishop Meaux, 213 
 Bouchain taken, 128 
 Botifflers, Marshal, his defence of 
 Lille, 95 ; capitulates, 97 ; serves 
 under Villars in Flanders, loi ; 
 named to the command at Malpla- 
 quet, 104 
 Brabant, duc'.iy of, claims to, 15; 
 
 inclining to French, 92 
 Brandenburg, Elector of, 33 
 Brihuega, battle of, 113 
 Bristol, proportion of population to 
 
 London, 1S9 
 Bruges taken, 78 
 
 Brussels falls into the hands of Marl- 
 borough, 77 
 Burgundy, Duke of, commands in 
 Flanders, 93 ; defeated at Oude- 
 narde, 95 ; his education, 182 ; his 
 marriage, 182 ; his death, 182 
 Burgundy, Duchess of, her death, 
 
 182 
 Burnet, Bishop of Salisbury, 25 ; 
 credited with the improvement of 
 the position of the clergy, 210 
 Byng, Admiral Sir George, 147 
 
 CABINET government, 123-124 
 Cadiz, English expedition 
 against, 45 
 Calendar, change in Russian, 155 
 Camisards, the, rebellion of, 50 ; per- 
 secuted by Dragonades, 52 ; their 
 retaliation, 53 ; severity used to 
 put down the rebellion, 53 ; appeal 
 to foreign governments, 53 ; end of 
 the war, 54 ; their bravery, 55 
 Campaign of 1702, 41 ; of 1704, 56 ; 
 of 1705, 65 : of 1706, 73 ; of 1707, 
 86 ; of 1708, 92 ; of 1709, 100 ; of 
 17x0, 128 
 
 COL 
 
 'Campaign, the,' 226-7 
 
 Carleton, Captain, 70 
 
 Castilians, the, 7, in 
 
 Catalans, the, 70 
 
 Catalonia subdued, 71 
 
 Catalonians, the, 186 
 
 Catherine, Czarina, rescues the Rus- 
 sian army, 165 ; married to Peter 
 the Great, 166 
 
 Cato, 229 
 
 Cavalier, Jean, his daring character, 
 
 51 ; his chivalry and uprightness, 
 
 52 ; his later life, 55 
 Cevennes, the, 22 ; rising in, 48-56 
 Charles IL of England, secret treaty 
 
 with Louis XIV., 17; his opinion 
 of Prince George of Denmark, 
 25 
 
 Charles II. of Spain, claimants to the 
 throne on his death, 2 ; his will, 9 
 
 Charles V., Emperor, i 
 
 Charles XII., King of Sweden, 
 visited by Marlborougfh, 87; his 
 enemies, 158 ; beginning of his 
 reign, 158 ; his character, 159 ; 
 subdues Denmark and Poland, 
 160; defeats the Russians at 
 Narva, 160 ; arbiter of Europe, 
 
 161 ; his campaign against Russia, 
 
 162 ; defeated by Peter the Great 
 at Pultowa, 164 ; overpowered at 
 Bender, 166 ; his death, 167 
 
 Charles Emanuel, son of Victor 
 Amadeus, 187 
 
 Charles the Archduke, claimant to 
 the throne of Spain, 4 ; joins Lord 
 Peterborough, 67 ; refuses to enter 
 Madrid, 84: takes part in the 
 campaign of 1710, 108 ; enters 
 Madrid, in ; becomes Emperor, 
 128 ; holds out against the peace 
 of Utrecht, 134; his later policy, 
 187 : his death, 188 
 
 Church, High and Low, origin of, 117 
 
 Churches of England and Scotland, 
 unaffected by the Union, 141 
 
 Churchill, Lord John {see Marl- 
 borough, Duke of) 
 
 Claret, a favourite wine in England 
 at this time, 204 
 
 Clergy, the, their position, 210 
 
 Coal-fields, 201 
 
 Coffee, introduction of, into England, 
 
 ^203 
 
 Cologne, Archbishop of, 33 ; Elector 
 of, 39 
 
 COM 
 
 Commerce, increase in, 192 
 'Conduct of the Allies,' 222 
 Continental war, the, 23 
 Com, the staple produce of England, 
 
 200 
 Corneille, 213 
 Cotton, importation of, 201 
 Cremona, victory of Prince Eugene 
 
 at, 43 
 ' Criticism, Essay on,' 218 
 Cromwell, Oliver, his anticipated 
 
 union with Scotland, 139 
 Cutts, Lord, 6t 
 
 DARIEN Company, the, 8 ; pro- 
 posed dissolution of, 141 
 
 Daun, Marshal, 80, 90 
 
 Defoe, Daniel, his character and 
 books, 223-225 
 
 Denain, battle of, 132 
 
 Dendermonde, siege of, 78 
 
 Denmark, her territory on the shores 
 of the Baltic, 149 
 
 Dover, treaty of, 17 
 
 Dragonades, 52 
 
 Drama, French, the, 212 
 
 ' Drapier's Letters,' 222 
 
 Dninkenness in the eighteenth cen- 
 tury, 205 , . , „ 
 
 Dryden, compared with Pope, 219 
 
 Dutch, application of the word, 34 ; 
 their anxiety for peace, 92 ; effect 
 of the war on, 136 
 
 ECONOMIC condition of the 
 people of England, 188 
 
 Election, general, of 1710, 125 
 
 Electors, the, how they ranged 
 themselves, 33 
 
 Elizabeth, sister of Charles I., her 
 descendants, 171 
 
 England, indignation against William 
 III. in, 8; foreign policy in the 
 seventeenth century, 16; formation 
 of league with Holland and Swe- 
 den, 17 ; revolution of 1688, 22 ; 
 declaration of war, 40 ; victory at 
 Schellenberg, 58 ; victory over the 
 French at Blenheim, 63 : defeats 
 the French at Ramillies, 77 ; troops 
 separated from the allies, 131 ; her 
 gains by the war of Spanish succes- 
 sion, 134-135 ; social and economic 
 condition of the people at this time. 
 
 FRE 
 
 188-210 ; compared with other 
 European nations, 201 ; union 
 with Scotland {see Union with 
 Scotland) 
 
 English Literature, 215-231 
 
 Equivalent, the, 141 
 
 Eugene of Savoy, Prince, his cha- 
 racter and intimacy with Marl- 
 borough, 30 ; his victory at Cre- 
 mona, 43 ; his meeting with Marl- 
 borough, 57 ; his position in the 
 battle of Blenheim, 61, 62 ; his 
 attack on Lutzingen, 64 ; marches 
 to Turin, 79 ; his victory at Turin, 
 81 ; besieges Toulon, 90 ; joins 
 Marlborough in the battle of 
 Oudenarde, 93 ; besieges Lille, 96 ; 
 wounded at Slalplaquet, 104 ; his 
 mission to England, 130 ; separated 
 from Ormond, 131 
 
 Evelyn, John, 154 
 
 Exchange, the, 192, 193 
 
 FENELON, Archbishop of Cam- 
 bray, 214: his ' Adventures o 
 Telemachus,' 182 
 
 Feodor, 152 
 
 Finland, falls into the hands of 
 Russia, 165 
 
 Flag, national, changes in, 143 
 
 France, her position at the com- 
 mencement of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury, 4 ; injuries caused to, by 
 the revocation of the Edict of 
 Nantes, 21 ; her chance against 
 the league, 39 ; herobjcct in making 
 thccampaignof 1704, 56; defeated 
 at Blenheim, 63 ; defeated at Ra- 
 millies, 77 ; commences the siege 
 of Turin, 79 ; demoralisation of' 
 troops, 81 ; defeated at Turin, 81 ; 
 defeats the allies at Almanza, 88 ; 
 her endeavours to win Brabant 
 back, 92 : defeated by the allies at 
 Oudenarde, 95 ; public misery in, 
 97 ; intolerable proposal by the 
 allies and appeal to the people, 99 ; 
 and the answer to it, 100 ; troops, 
 withdrawn from Spain, 107 ; vic- 
 tory at Denain, 132 ; effect of the 
 war on, 135 
 
 Frederick Augustus, the Strong, of 
 Poland, 158 ; defeated by Charles. 
 XIL. 161 
 
f 
 
 236 
 
 Index, 
 
 Index, 
 
 m 
 
 FRE 
 
 Frederick, Elector of Brandenburg, 
 
 Fredenck, the Elector Palatine, 33, 
 
 171 
 Frederick, King of Denmark, 158; 
 
 defeated by Charles XII., 160 
 Fredericshall, siege of, 167 
 French Literature, 210-215 
 French prose, development of, 213 
 
 GALWAY, Eari of, in Portugal, 
 46 ; enters Madrid, 83 ; junc- 
 tion with Peterborough at Guada- 
 laxera, 85 ; defeated at Almanza, 
 88 ; his letter to Marlborough re- 
 garding his defeat, 89 ; appointed 
 to the command in Portugal, 105 
 George I., Elector of Hanover, pro- 
 claimed King of England, 178 ; 
 his early life, 179 ; his bravery, 
 179; a good Elector, 179 ; unpo- 
 pular: could not speak English, 
 179 ; phlegmatic, 179 ; his wife, 
 180 ; a good king for England, 180 
 George II., son of George I., 179 
 George, prince of Denmark, marries 
 Anne, 25 ; appointed Lord High 
 Admiral, 26 ; his sympathy with 
 ^ the Occasional Conformity Bill, 118 
 Germany, weakness of, 13 ; campaign 
 in, 43-44 
 
 Gettruydenburg, conference at, 133 
 Ghent taken, 78 
 
 Gibraltar taken by the English, 47 
 Godolphin, appomted Lord High 
 
 Treasurer, 29, 117; his character, 
 
 30 ; goes over to the Whig party, 
 
 118 ; loses favour with Anne, 123 ; 
 
 dismissal from office, 126 ; his 
 
 death, 130 
 Grand alliance of the Hague, the, ii, 
 
 23 ; its component parts, 32-40 ; 
 
 progress of, 35 
 Guadalaxara, junction of Galway 
 
 and Peterborough at, 85 
 Guiscard, Marquis of, assails Harley, 
 
 127 
 'Gulliver's Travels,' 223 
 
 TTAGUE, the, conference of, 98, 
 
 Hampden, John, i8i 
 Hanover, Electoral Prince of, 94 
 Hanoverian succession secured, 178 
 Hapsburg, House of, 32 
 
 JAM 
 
 Harley, Robert, his ministry, 122 : 
 as Secretary of State, 123 ; as chief 
 of the Tory party, 126, 127 : attack 
 on his life, 127; made Earl of Ox- 
 ford, 127; dismissed from office, 
 176 : lines from Pope on, 217 
 
 Hemsius, Anthony, Pensionary, a 
 friend of Marlborough, 31 
 
 Henry of Navarre, 21 
 
 Hesse, Prince of, 68, 69 ; his death, 
 70 : his successor invests Mons, 103 
 
 High Church, origin of, 117 
 
 Hill, Abigail, in favour with Anne, 
 121 ; marries Mr. Masham, 122 ; 
 {see Masham, Mrs.) 
 
 Hill, Colonel, commands an expedi- 
 tion against Quebec, 129 
 
 Hochstadt, battle of, 44 
 
 Holland, invasion of, 17 ; formation 
 of league with Holland and Swe- 
 den, 17 ; cutting of the dykes, 18 ; 
 application of the word, 35 ; de- 
 cline of her influence in Europe, 136 
 
 Holstein, Duke of, 158 
 
 * Homer,' 218 
 
 Hooke, Colonel, 145 
 
 Horace, compared with Pope, 218 
 
 Hudson's Bay Territory, acquired by 
 England, 135 
 
 Huguenots, effect of the revocation 
 of the Edict of Nantes, 20 ; perse- 
 cution and emigration, 21 ; geo- 
 graphy of their country, 48 
 
 Hungary, its condition during the 
 war of the Spanish succession, 55- 
 56 ; revolt in, 56 
 Huy, fortress of, taken, 43 
 
 T NGOLSTADT fortress, 59 
 
 JL Innsbruck captured by the Ba- 
 varians, 44 
 
 Italy, North, war in, 43 ; campaign 
 in, 74 ; the allied cause in, 79 
 
 Ivan, 152 
 
 JACOBITES, the, rising of, 145 : 
 their real strength, 174 ; their 
 connection with the Tories, 174 
 James II., King of England, 10, 22 
 James Stuart, Francis Edward, sur- 
 named the Pretender, his character 
 145-146 ; Jacobite rising in favour 
 of, 145 ; acknowledged as king by 
 Lewis XIV., 146 
 
 JEN 
 
 Jennings, Sarah, wife of the Duke of 
 
 Marlborough, 26 
 Joseph, Electoral Prince, claimant to 
 
 the throne of Spain, 4 ; his death, 6 
 Joseph, succeeds his father Leopold 
 
 I. as emperor, 33 ; his death, 128 
 Junto, the, 120 
 
 KAISERSWERTH, siege of, 41 
 Kidd, Captain, 120 
 Kufstein, fortress of, captured by the 
 Bavarians, 44 
 
 LABOURERS, statute of, 197 
 La Gudina, battle of, 108 
 
 Landau taken, 43 ; retaken, 44 
 
 Landrticies, siege of, 132 
 
 Law, Scotch, not changed by the 
 Union act, x^i 
 
 LecTiinski Stanislaus, elected King of 
 Poland, 161 
 
 Leopold, emperor, 32, 33 
 
 Lewis XIV., renounces his rights to 
 the throne of Spain, 2 : his power 
 in Europe, 4 ; his quarrels with 
 William of Orange, 5 ; his nego- 
 tiations with William of Orange, 
 6; his mistaken policy, 9, 10; 
 claims the Netheriands, 10; his 
 reign, 13 ; his ambition, 14 ; his 
 character, 14; lays claim to the 
 duchy of Brabant, 15 ; secret treaty 
 with Charles II., 17 : at war with 
 Holland, 17 ; the title of * Great' 
 bestowed on him, 19 ; his three 
 symptoms of madness, 20 ; seizure 
 of Strassburg, and revocation of 
 the Edict of Nantes, 20 : ravaging 
 of the Palatinate, 22 : ' Hereditary 
 Foe of the Holy Empire,' 32 ; op- 
 poses the Duke of Savoy, 37 ; cam- 
 paign of 1704, 56 ; his overtures for 
 peace, 98 ; his appeal to the people 
 of France concerning the terms of 
 the allies, 99 ; the answer to it, 
 100 ; withdraws his troops from 
 Spain, 107 : his offers to the allies, 
 132 ; his new proposals, 1^3 ; his 
 death, 180 ; events in England 
 parallel with his life, 181 ; troubles 
 at the end of his reign, 181 ; joy at 
 his death, 184 ; disputes regarding 
 the regent on his death, i8a 
 
 Lewis XV., succeeds to the throne of 
 France, 183 ; commencement of 
 
 MAR 
 
 reign contrasted with that of 
 Lewis XIV., 183-184 
 
 Lewis, Prince of Baden, 34 ; takes 
 Landau, 43 ; his disputes with 
 Marlborough, 57 
 
 Lewis the Dauphin, his death, 18 r 
 
 Liege taken, 41 
 
 Lille, siege of, 95 ; surrenders, 97 
 
 Literature, English, Augustan age 
 of, 215 ; connexion of literary men 
 with statesmen, 216 ,- alliance with 
 politics, 219, 220 
 
 Literature, French, Augustan age of, 
 210 ; greatness in first half of reign, 
 212 ; influence on English litera- 
 ture, 214 ; afterwards inspired by 
 England, 215 
 
 ' Little Grandsire,' the, 157 
 
 Livonia falls into the hands of Rus- 
 sia, 165 
 
 Loire valley, the, 48 
 
 London, population of, 190; dis> 
 turbed life in, 191 ; divided into the 
 City and Westminster, 191 ; the 
 Exchange and commerce, 192 ; 
 architecture, 193 
 
 Louvain taken, 77 
 
 LowChurch, onginof, 117 
 
 Lutzingen taken, 64 
 
 Luxuries, far-brought supply of, in 
 the eighteenth century, 203 
 
 MACAULAY, extract from, 18 
 Madrid, relinquished by the 
 allies, 84 
 
 Mahon, Port, taken, 106 
 
 Maintenon, Madame de, 21, 99 
 
 Majorca declares for allies, 90 
 
 Malplaquet, battle of, preparations, 
 100 ; description of ground, 103 ; 
 the battle, 104 ; and result, 105 
 
 ' Man, Essay on,' 218 
 
 Manufactures, growth of, 189, 201 
 
 Margrave of Bayreuth. 91 
 
 Maria Theresa, wife of Lewis XIV., 
 renounces right to the throne of 
 Spain, 2 
 
 Maria Theresa, daughter of the Em 
 peror Charles VI., 187-188 
 
 Marlborough, Earl of, afterwank 
 Duke, (John Churchill) as Gover- 
 nor to the Duke of Gloucester, 25 ; 
 early life. 26 ; dismissed from all 
 his employments, 27 ; aids James, 
 27 ; restored to favour, 27 ; his 
 
.238 
 
 Itidex. 
 
 MAR 
 
 character and virtues, 28, 20 ; ap- 
 pointed Commander-in-Chief, 40 ; 
 m Flanders, 40-43 ; his object and 
 first campaign, 41 ; result of cam- 
 paign, 41 ; in danger, 42 ; results of 
 second campaign, 42 ; made Duke, 
 42 ; his plans and meeting with 
 Prince Eugene, 57 ; his victory at 
 Schellenberg, 58 ; preparations for 
 the battle of Blenheim, 59 ; report 
 of his victory at Blenheim, 63 ; his 
 designs upon Italy, 74 ; his cam- 
 paign of 1706, 74 ; narrow escape 
 of being taken prisoner, 76 ; his 
 plans, 76 : his victory at Ramillies, 
 77 ; takes Brussels and Antwerp, 
 77 ; proposed as Governor of 
 Netherlands, 79 ; his campaign of 
 1707, 86 ; visits the King of Swe- 
 den, 87 ; in Flanders, 87 ; his cam- 
 paign of 1708, 92 ; defeats the 
 French at Oudenarde, 94 ; prepa- 
 rations for the campaign of 1710, 
 100 ; defeats the French at Mal- 
 plaquet, 104; ascendency of, 117 ; 
 change in his political views, 118; 
 loses favour with Anne, 123 ; his 
 request to be made Commander- 
 in-Chief for life refused, 124 ; his 
 last campaign, 128 ; disgrace of, 
 129 ; libels against him, 129 ; re- 
 turns to England and is again ap- 
 pointed Commander-in-Chief of the 
 army, 185 ; his death, 186 
 
 Marlborough, Lady, the favourite of 
 Anne, 26 ; her influence over Anne, 
 26: allied to the Junto, 121 ; dismiss- 
 ed from Court, 126 ; her death, 186 
 
 Marsin, Marshal, in Bavaria, 57 ; 
 routed at Blenheim, 62 ; commands 
 at siege of Turin, 80 ; defeated at 
 Turin, 81 
 
 Masham, Mrs. (Abigail Hill), her 
 influence over Anne, 122 
 
 Maurice, Prince, 172 
 
 Maximilian, Elector of Bavaria, at 
 the battle of Blenheim, 61 
 
 Mayence, Archbishop of, 33 
 
 Mazarin, on Lewis XIV., 14 
 
 Mazeppa, 163, 164 
 
 Menin, siege of, 78 
 
 Methuen Treaty, the, 38 ; hard 
 drinking traced to it, 205 
 
 Milan, convention of, 82 ; ceded to 
 Austria, 135 
 
 Minorca, taken by the English, 106 
 
 PAM 
 
 Mohawks, the, 191 
 Moliere, 212 
 
 Monasteries, suppression of, 197 
 Money, value of, in this reign, 199 
 Monjuich, capture of, 69 
 Mons, besieged, 102 ; taken, 105 
 Mordaunt. Charles, Earl of Peter- 
 borough {see Peterborough, Earl of 
 
 NANTES, Edict of, revoked, 20 
 Naples, makes peace apart 
 from Spain, 82 ; secured by the 
 Emperor, 90 ; ceded to Austria, 135 
 
 Narva, battle of, i6o 
 
 Nash, Richard, 196 
 
 National Debt, the general principle 
 of, 205 ; later history of, 206 
 
 Nebel, passage of the, 62 
 
 Netherlands, the war in, 74 ; ceded 
 to Austria, 135 
 
 Newfoundland, ceded to England, 
 135 
 
 Noguera river, 108, 109 
 
 North-Eastern State System, com- 
 prising Denmark, Poland, Sweden 
 and Russia, 148-152 
 
 Nova Scotia, ceded to England, 135 
 
 Nules taken, 72 
 
 Nymwegen, treaty of, 19 
 
 OBERGLAU, village of, 62 
 Occasional Conformity Bill, 
 description of, 118 ; defeated in the 
 House of Lords, 119 ; passed, 126 
 
 Orange, Prince of, takes part in the 
 battle of Malplaquet, T04 
 
 Orleans, Duke of, commands at 
 Turin, 80; succeeds to the com- 
 mand of the French forces, 107 ; 
 becomes regent on the death of 
 Lewis XIV., 184 ; his policy, 185 
 
 Ormond, Duke of, 45 ; appointed 
 Commander-in-Chief, 130 
 
 Ostend, siege of, 78 
 
 Ottomond, tomb of, 76 
 
 Oudenarde, battle of, 93 ; battle be- 
 gins, 94 ; sequel of battle, 95 
 
 Overkirk, Marshal, 94 
 
 Oxford, Earl of, impeached, 175-176 
 
 PALATINATE, ravaging of the. 
 22 ; Elector of, 33 
 Pamphlets, 221 
 
 Index, 
 
 239 
 
 Parties, strength of, 208 ; at the Uni- 
 versities, 209 ; patronage by, 220 
 Partition, first treaty of, 6 ; second 
 treaty of, 6 ; results of these treaties 
 in Spain, 7 
 Pascal, 214 
 Paterson, William, his expedition to 
 
 Darien, 7, 8 
 Patriarchate abolished in Russia, 156 
 Patronage of French literature, 211 ; 
 of English literature, 216 ; by 
 parties, 220 
 Pauperism in Anne's reign, 198 
 Peace, negotiations for, 132 
 Peerage, Irish and Scotch, 142 
 Pepys, Mr., his first cup of tea, 202 
 Peter the Great, his early life and real 
 accession to power, 152 ; his policy, 
 1^3 ; his appearance, 155 ; his de- 
 sire for a navy, 154 ; visits Hol- 
 land and England, 154 ; changes 
 the capital and calendar of Russia, 
 155 ; abolishes patriarchate, 156 ; 
 adopts European fashions, 156 : 
 institutes the Tchin, 157 ; defeated 
 by Charles XII. at Narva, 160 ; 
 his victory over Charles XII. at 
 Pultowa, 16^ ; at war with Tur- 
 key, 165; his second journey to 
 Europe, 167 ; death of his son, 
 168 : his death, 168 
 Peterborough, Earl of (Mordaunt). 
 his early life, 65 ; sent to command 
 in Spain, €6 ; his character, 66 ; 
 progress of his expedition, 67 ; his 
 proposals regarding Valencia, 68 ; 
 before Barcelona, 68 ; takes Mon- 
 juich, 69 ; takes Barcelona, 70 ; 
 subdues Catalonia and Valencia, 
 
 71 ; his energy, 71 ; his success at 
 San Mateo, 71-72 ; his winter 
 campaign, 72 ; relieves Barcelona, 
 
 72 ; raises the siege, 82-83 • junc- 
 tion with Galway at Guadalaxara, 
 85 ; quits the army, 85 
 
 Philip IL of Spain, i 
 
 Philip, Duke of Anjou, Philip V. of 
 Spain, claimant to the throne of 
 Spain, 4 ; proclaimed King of 
 Spain, 9 ; besieges Barcelona, 82 ; 
 Spanish loyalty to, 84 ; heads the 
 army at Villa Viciosa, 114; re- 
 nounces claim to the French 
 croMm, 134 ; his abdication, 187 
 
 Piedmont, evacuated by the French, 
 83 
 
 RUP 
 
 Poland, her territories, 150 
 
 Police service, inefficiency of, in the 
 
 eighteenth century, ipt 
 Politics, alliance of, with literature, 
 
 219-220 
 Pomerania claimed by Prussia, 165 
 Poor law, the, 198 
 Pope, his life and most famous works, 
 
 217 ; compared with Horace, 218 ; 
 
 his influence, 219 ; his style, 219; 
 
 compared with Dryden, 219 ; Ms 
 
 lines on Addison, 228 
 Population during this reign, 188 
 Port, a favourite drink in England, 
 
 205 
 Portoust's claret, 204 
 Portugal, joins the Grand Alliance, 
 
 38 ; subject to Spain, 38 ; accedes 
 
 to the Grand Alliance, 46 
 Pragmatic Sanction, the, 188 
 Pretender, the {see James) 
 Prose, French, development of, 213 
 Protestant Succession, measures to 
 
 secure it, 169 ; secured, 178 
 ' Provincial Letters,' the, 214 
 Prussia constituted a kingdom, 34 ; 
 
 recognised by France, 136 
 Pruth, the affair of the, 165 
 Pultowa, battle of, 164 ; results, 165 
 
 QUEBEC, expedition against, 
 "9 
 Queen Anne's Bounty, aio 
 
 RACINE, 21 
 Ramillies, battle of, the armies 
 and ground, 74 ; the battle, 76 ; 
 result, 77 
 
 ' Rape of the Lock,' the, 218 
 
 Rastadt, peace of, 134 
 
 Religious distinction between Whigs 
 and Tories, 116 
 
 Representation of Scotland in par- 
 liament, 142 
 
 Repudiation, 207 
 
 Revolution of 1688, party views of 
 the, 116 
 
 Rhone valley, the, 48 
 
 Rights, Bill of, 24 _ 
 
 ' Robinson Crusoe,' 225 
 
 Rooke, Sir George, 45; captures 
 Gibraltar, 47 
 
 Rousseau, Jean Jacques, 215 
 
 Rupert, Pnnce, 172 
 
240 
 
 Index. 
 
 RUS 
 
 Russia, her territories, 149, 151 ; 
 foundation of St. Petersburg, 155 ; 
 patriarchate abolished, 156 ; Euro- 
 pean fashions adopted, 156 ; war 
 with Turkey, 165 
 
 Ryswick, peace of, 5 
 
 SACHEVERELL, Dr., his ser- 
 mon and parliamentary pro- 
 ceedings against him, 125 
 
 St. George, Chevalier, 95 
 
 St. John, Henry, as Secretary at 
 War, 123 ; his character, 127 ; 
 created Lord Bolingbroke, 128 ; 
 his schemes, 176 
 
 St. Paul's, rebuilt by Sir C. Wren, 
 194 ; cost, 194 
 
 St. Petersburg, foundation of, 155 
 
 Saint Simon, Due de, memoirs of, 
 
 213 
 
 St. Stephen's, Walbrook, 194 
 
 San Mateo, siege of, 71 
 
 Saragossa, battle of, no 
 
 Sardinia taken, 106 
 
 Savoy, joins the Grand Alliance, 35 ; 
 secured to the cause of the Grand 
 Alliance, 82 
 
 Savoy, Duke of, (^^^ Victor Amadeus) 
 
 Saxony, Elector of, 33 
 
 Scania, claimed by Denmark, 165 
 
 Schellenberg, storming of, 58 
 
 Schlusselburg taken, 162 
 
 Scilly Isles, shipwreck off, 91 
 
 Scotland, ill-will of, against William 
 III., 8; union with England {see 
 Union with Scotland) 
 
 Security, Act of, 139 
 
 Serf, a, 196 
 
 Settlement, Act of, 25, 139 
 
 Sevigne, Madame de, her letters, 213 
 
 ' Shortest way with Dissenters,' 225 
 
 Shovel, Sir Cloudesley, is ship- 
 wrecked off the Scilly Isles, 91 
 
 Shrewsbury, Earl of {see Talbot) 
 
 Social condition of the people of 
 England, 188 
 
 Somers, Lord, the leader and guide 
 of the Whig party, 120 ; as presi- 
 dent of the Council, 123 
 
 Sophia, princess, sister of Peter the 
 Great, 152 
 
 Sophia, electress, her descendants, 
 171 ; her life, 172 ; named suc- 
 cessor to Anne, 173 
 
 SWI 
 
 Sophia Dorothea, of Zell, wife of 
 George I., i8o 
 
 Spain, monarchy of, i ; claimants to 
 the throne on the death of Charles 
 II., 2 ; anxieties regarding the 
 crown, 4 ; and anger against 
 William, 7 ; English expedition 
 against, 45 ; invasion of, 47 ; Peter- 
 borough's campaign in, 67-73 I 
 later campaigns in, 105 ; French 
 troops withdrawn from, 107 ; de- 
 feated at the battle of Almenara, 
 109; defeated at Saragossa, no; 
 end of war, 114 ; her losses by the 
 war, 135 
 
 Spanish galleons destroyed at Vigo, 
 46 
 
 Spanish monarchy in the hands of 
 Philip v., 134 
 
 Spanish succession, the, 1-12 ; open- 
 ing of the war, 40-48 ; the point 
 of greatest success in the war, 
 83 : general considerations on, 
 
 137 
 
 'Spectator,' the, 230; its influence, 
 231 
 
 Stanhope, General, 84, 105 ; com- 
 mands the British troops, 105 ; 
 takes Minorca and Port Mahon, 
 106 ; advances and pa.sses the river 
 Noguera, 108 : his victory at Alme- 
 nara, 109 ; and Saragossa, no ; 
 enters Madrid, m ; winters at 
 Toledo, 112 ; defeated at Brihuega, 
 
 "3 
 
 Staremberg, 106 ; colleague of Stan- 
 hope, io8 ; his victory at Sara- 
 gossa, no; gives battle at Villa 
 Viciosa, 114 
 
 Steele, Richard, his character, 229, 
 230 ; his works, 230 
 
 Stradella, pass of, 80 
 
 Stralsund, siege of, 167 
 
 Strassburg, seizuift of, 20 
 
 Strelitzes, the, 157 • 
 
 Sunderland, Earl of, as Secretary of 
 State, 120 
 
 Sweden, formation of league with 
 England and Holland, 17 ; her 
 territory on the shores of the Bal- 
 tic, 149 ; her power, 150 ; defeated 
 at Pultowa, 164 
 
 Swift, Dean, on Lord Peterborough, 
 66 ; in favour of repudiation, 207 ; 
 his life and works, 221-223 ; his 
 death, 223 
 
 Index. 
 
 241 
 
 TAC 
 
 T ACKERS, the, 119 
 Talbot Charles, Earl of Shrews- 
 bury, his previous career, 177 ; as 
 Secretary of State, 1 77; retires from 
 office, 177 ; appointed Lord High 
 Treasurer, 178 
 
 * Tale of a Tub,' 222 
 
 Tallard, General, 6 ; joins Marsin, 
 58 ; his position at the battle of 
 Blenheim, 61 : taken prisoner, (>z 
 
 •Tatler,' the, 230 
 
 Tavieres taken, 76 
 
 Tchin, the, institution of, 157 
 
 Tea regarded as a luxury, 202 
 
 Te Deum in St. Paul's Cathedral, 
 138 
 
 Temple, Sir William, 17 
 
 Test act, the, 118 
 
 Theology, French, 213 
 
 'I'obacco, great consumption of, 204 
 
 Toledo, winter quarters of the allies, 
 112 
 
 Toleration, Edict of, 48 
 
 Torcy, M. de, at the Hague, 98 ; 
 anecdote of, 132 
 
 Tories, their principles, 115 ; their 
 views of the Revolution of 1688, 116; 
 their religious views distinguished 
 from the Whigs, 116-117 ; majority 
 at general election of 1710, 125 ; 
 election of twelve peers, 130 ; the 
 Jacobites, connection with, 174 ; 
 the ministry at the end of Anne's 
 reign, 175 : strength of, 208 
 
 Toulon besieged, 90 
 
 Toulouse, Count of, 82 ; besieges 
 Barcelona, 82, 83 
 
 Toumai taken, 102 
 
 Towns, important, 190 
 
 Townshend, Lord, 98 
 
 Treasure ships, destruction of, at 
 
 Vigo, 46 
 Treves, Archbishop of, 33 
 
 Triple alliance, the, 17 
 
 * True-bom Englishman,' the, 224 
 Turin, siege of, 79 ; state of the 
 siege, 80 ; battle of, 81 ; result of 
 the battle, 81 
 Turkey, war with Russia, 165 
 
 UNIGENITUS Bull, the. 214 
 Union Jack, the, 143 
 Union with Scotland, earlier attempts 
 at union, 138: commissioners ap- 
 pointed, 140; arrangements pro- 
 
 WHE 
 
 posed, 140 ; opposition in Scotland, 
 141 ; results, 144 ; compared with 
 the union with Ireland, 144 
 
 Unterglau, 60 
 
 Utrecht, peace of, 132-138 ; congress 
 a*' 133 ; peace signed, 133 ; argu- 
 ments for, 136 ; arguments against, 
 
 m 
 
 VAGRANTS, statute of, 197 
 Valencia, subdued, 71 ; reco- 
 vered by the French, 89 
 
 Vanbnigh, Sir John, 195 
 
 Vendome, Duke of, 78 ; defeats the 
 Imperialists at Calcinato, 70 ; com- 
 mands in Flanders, 93 ; defeated 
 at Oudenarde, 95 ; sent to com- 
 mand in Spain, 112: defeats the 
 English at Brihuega, 113 
 
 Venloo, capitulation of, 41 
 
 Victor Amadeus IL, Duke of Savoy, 
 his character, 35 ; his part in the 
 war before Ryswick, 36; in the 
 Spanish succession, 36 ; his corre- 
 spondence with Lewis XIV., 37 ; 
 opposes him, 37 ; joins Prince 
 Eugene, 80 ; made King of Sicily, 
 186 ; his abdication and death, 
 187 
 
 Vigo Bay, battle in, 46 
 
 Villadarias, Marquis of, 45 ; com- 
 mander of Spanish army, 109 
 
 Villars, marshal, commands in the 
 Cevennes, 54 ; defeats the allies on 
 the Rhine, 91 ; commands in Flan- 
 ders, loi : wounded at Malplaqiiet, 
 104 ; defeats Prince Eugene at 
 Denain, 132 
 Villa Viciosa, battle of. 114 
 
 Villeroy, marshal, commands in 
 Flanders, 74 ; defeated at Ramil- 
 lies, 77 
 Voltaire, 215 
 
 WALPOLE, Sir Robert, as prime 
 minister, 179 
 War of the Blouses, 50 
 Webb, Genera], his victory at Wy- 
 
 nendale, 96 
 West Indies, war in, 44 
 Westphalia, peace of, 13 
 Wheat, fluctuations in the price of, 
 199 
 
 M,H. 
 
24-2 
 
 Index. 
 
 WHI 
 
 Whigs, their principles, 115; their 
 views of the Revolution of i688, 
 116 ; their religious views distin- 
 guished from the Tories, 116-117 ; 
 strength of, 2op 
 
 William III., pnnce of Orange, 35 ; 
 his quarrels with Lewis XIV., 5 ; 
 his negotiations with Lewis XIV., 
 6 ; opposition in England and Scot- 
 land to, 8 ; his death and character, 
 n ; as a European statesman, 12 ; 
 at war with Lewis XIV., 18 ; e,\- 
 
 WYN 
 
 pedition against Cadiz, 45 ; his in- 
 fluence on foreign policy, 116 
 
 William, Duke of Gloucester, 25 
 
 Wine, great change in the taste for, 
 204 
 
 Witt, De, massacred, 17, i8 
 
 Wool, exportation of, 200 
 
 Wren, Sir Christopher, his plan for 
 the city of London, 190 ; Iiis cha- 
 racter, 193 : rebuilds St. Paul's, 
 194 ; his style of architecture, 195 
 
 Wynendale, skirmish at, 96 
 
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